SARANAC LAKE — Zander Daniels rushed for 173 yards as Saranac combined for 389 yards on the ground and six touchdowns to defeat Saranac Lake, 40-0, Saturday in Saranac Lake.
With the win, the Spartans lock up the top seed Section VII Class C playoffs and are still in the hunt to capture the CVAC regular season crown.
It started early when quarterback Corbin Duffield reeled off a 59 yard touchdown run on the second play of scrimmage.
“I think a score on our first possession kind of set the stone,” Saranac head coach Dylan Everleth said. “And our defense put us in good spots all game long. I thought they played phenomenal all game and holding [Saranac Lake] scoreless is huge.
“When we weren’t scoring, we were flipping the field and setting our defense up in good positions. I think the two work hand-in-hand.”
Duffield agreed, saying the first score really got the team going.
““I think it really set the tone that we were going to play that way all day,” Duffield said. “The boys up front really did their jobs well and kept it going throughout the whole game.”
Daniels added he loved playing behind the offensive line.
“I couldn’t be any more grateful to play behind those five guys up front,” he said. “They’re probably the best five I’ve been behind. I’m so grateful to have them.”
As Everleth said it wasn’t just the offense setting the tone, but the defense accounted for four turnovers, winning the turnover battle 4-0.
““That’s one of our goals every week is just to win the turnover battle, and we certainly did it today,” Daniels said. “We just went out there, and our defense played impeccably.”
“The [defense is] aggressive,” Everleth said. “They’re athletic and I think we’re as physical as anyone. It’s starting to really click.
“When we’re taking care of the ball on offense and causing disruption on defense it’s putting us in a good spot all around.”
Saranac only held a 13-0 lead at the break, and it wouldn’t be until the fourth quarter when the game was blown open.
The Spartans scored 27 points in that period. Duffield scored from four yards out before Daniels, Sam Larche and Ethan Pflanz scored from 42, 66 and 35 yards, respectively.
Duffield praised the togetherness Saranac had led to victory.
“I think just the energy overall,” he said. “Being together and with each other throughout the game. No infighting. That brotherhood really speaks for itself.”
It will be tested Friday when the Spartans travel to face Peru for the league title.
Duffield said it wouldn’t be easy as Daniels added the Spartans have a chance to do something special.
Saranac’ s come a long way from being 0-2, Everleth said.
“I think we’ve learned a lot and come around as a team,” he said. “Everybody’s executing and everybody’s having a good time. Going into next week, Peru is explosive on offense and aggressive on defense.
“I want to see us execute to our potential as we prepare to head into the playoffs.”
Kickoff for Saranac and Peru is set for 7 p.m.
—
Saranac 40, Saranac Lake 0
SCS 13 0 0 27 — 40
SLCS 0 0 0 0 — 0
Scoring Summary
First quarter
S- Duffield 59 run (Pflanz kick), 11:12.
S- Daniels 6 run (kick blocked), 6:27.
Fourth quarter
S- Duffield 4 run (kick missed), 11:12.
S- Daniels 42 run (Pflanz kick), 10:43.
S- Larche 66 run (Pflanz kick), 5:28.
S- Pflanz 35 run (Pflanz kick), 2:04.
Individual statistics
Rushing
S- Daniels 17-173, 2TD; Duffield 10-60, 2TD; Walker 5-42; Larche 1-66, TD; McDevitt 1-5; Pflanz 2-43, TD. Totals: 36-389, 6TD.
SL- Montroy 10-35; E. Harvey 6-(-15); S. Nicholas 4-(-5); Team 1-(-3); M. Nicholas 2-12; Hamelin 3-13; Webb-Brown 1-(-3); Kilbourne-Hill 1-(-4). Totals: 28-30.
Passing
S- Duffield 4-13-0-26.
SL- E. Harvey 5-12-4-72; Martelle 0-1-0-0; M. Nicholas 1-5-0-13. Totals: 6-18-4-85.
Receiving
S- Boulds 2-22; Bingham 1-2; Scovil 1-2.
SL- S. Nicholas 2-17; Martelle 1-13; B. Harvey 2-23; Webb-Brown 1-32.
Interceptions
S- Duffield 2; Walker; Champagne.