The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Bounce Back
Oneida gets back on track with a 26-24 win over Chittenango
It has been a rough few weeks for the Oneida football squad. After starting the year, 2-0, taking home wins against Cortland and Marcellus, the momentum began to slow down. The Blue and Orange suffered three losses in a row via the hands of Camden, New Hartford, and their rivals Vernon-verona-sherrill.
So going into this matchup against Chittenango, this was most likely the biggest game of the year. A dark and gloomy night on the field, but Oneida was able to keep the rain away and take home the close 26-24 win.
The first quarter wasn’t anything write home about in terms of the offensive output. Instead, both teams were struggling to get into the endzone. Unfortunately, the quarter seemed to fly right by and ended with the score still at 0-0.
But the opening of the second quarter was where the game started to get going. After converting on a 4th and long, Braedon Williams scored one of his three touchdowns on the night. Then, after a successful PAT, the Blue and Orange broke the seal and went up 7-0.
It wasn’t just an offensive bounce back for Oneida. The
Blue and Orange were able to keep the Bears at bay with some strong defensive efforts. The Bears, throughout the game, weren’t able to find the goal line.
The first half ended with Oneida up 7-0.
Braedon Williams was able to secure two more touchdowns for Oneida in the third quarter. The first came off a 3-yard rushing TD and the next a massive 65-yard rush. Williams has been electric all season long with multiple games of huge rushes.
But the Bears would get on the board in the third with Martez Webb rushing 20-yards to the endzone, then converting on a 2PT attempt.
The third quarter ended with Oneida up 20-8.
The final quarter was where things got interesting. The quarter started with Oneida with possession but fumbled and was recovered by Chittenango. But Bears weren’t able to convert, and their drive resulted in a turnover on downs.
But Oneida turned the ball over again. With this amount of turnover from Oneida, the Bears had a chance to gain the lead on multiple occasions but couldn’t take advantage. Additionally, the Bears turned the ball over again—both squads looking very sloppy.
Oneida would secure another TD with Bryson Carinci executing a 1-yard rush. After a failed PAT, Oneida held a 26-8 lead over the Bears.
But Chittenango wasn’t going out quite yet.
Late in the 4th quarter, Chittenango QB, Aiden Cavotta, led the charge for the Bears with many positive gains that led to a 10-yard TD run. And Martez Webb converted on another 2PT conversion, bring the Bears closer with a score of 26-16.
After a failed drive from Oneida, the Bears came out and went upfield to gain another TD, with Hunter Taylor receiving a 45-yard TD pass from Aiden Cavotta. The Bears would convert on another 2PT attempt to bring the game within 2 points. But with no timeouts left and only about 1:20 remaining, it was too little too late.
The Blue and Orange ran out the clock and were able to hold on to that close win. With this win, Oneida improves to 3-3 and looks to end the season with a victory over Central Valley Academy.