Story Created:
Oct 15, 2009 at 10:00 AM EST
Story Updated:
Oct 16, 2009 at 11:35 PM EST
ONEIDA, N.Y. (WKTV) - Oneida won the first half on Friday by holding high-scoring rival Vernon-Verona-Sherrill to a scoreless draw, but the Red Devils won the second half and the game 21-16 to earn a home game in the first round of the playoffs.
Entering Friday, V-V-S, Oneida, Chittenango and South Jefferson were all tied for first in Class B East with 2-1 league records and each had a scenario in which it could win the league title. As it turned out, Chittenango beat South Jefferson 35-24 to win the title based on its head-to-head win over V-V-S, leaving the Red Devils in second and putting Oneida and South Jefferson on the road for the first round at third and fourth, respectively.
With V-V-S held to just 29 total yards in the first half, running back Colin Way led the charge in the second half with three touchdowns, finishing with 117 yards on 13 carries. Dylan Guider added 107 yards on 15 carries, helping to offset an off-night by quarterback Tyler Mautner, who was just 2-of-10 passing.
Down 14-0 in the fourth, Oneida cut it to 14-8 with a 7-yard touchdown run by Nate Mallinder. V-V-S responded with a 52-yard TD run by Way, and the Red Devils held on after the Indians cut the deficit again on a late, long touchdown pass from Jeremy Rodriguez to Shawn Ano.
V-V-S, which ends a seven-game losing streak to the Indians, enters the playoffs 6-1 overall while Oneida, the defending Section III, Class B champion, goes in at 4-3. The brackets will be announced on Sunday.
