LAPEL — Rain, wind and cold could do nothing to hinder the Lapel Bulldogs’ beginning run at a sectional title as they crushed the visiting rival Frankton Eagles 62-16 Friday, Oct. 19.
Their enthusiasm never waned, and with the exception of some offside calls, the Bulldogs had few missteps the entire game.
“We played a good game of football,” coach Tim Miller said. “Especially coming out of the gate those first two quarters.”
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The team was healthy, and it showed on the field.
“It’s given us energy in practice all week,” Miller said. “We went through scrimmage through about Week 8 missing five to six guys every week — and a different five to six each week. It was nice to have everybody back on the field tonight.”
Junior quarterback Cole Alexander put up 244 passing yards, throwing just 10 passes, but completing eight. Five of those passes resulted in touchdowns.
Senior receiver Connor Gill caught three for touchdowns and scored the first two of the night for the Bulldogs.
“Cole has had a phenomenal season,” Miller said.
The ground game had an impact as well, he said.
“We ran the ball pretty well tonight,” Miller said. “A lot of people run to set up the pass. We pass to set up the run. A lot of times our running game goes because we have a lot of receivers who are pretty dang good.”
Early in the second quarter, Alexander launched the ball to junior Charlie Prough for a 40-yard touchdown reception, putting the Bulldogs up 21-0.
Once Frankton got the ball back, quarterback Gavin Ward’s pass went into the hands of senior Bulldog Jakob Addington in the Eagles’ endzone, and the Bulldogs had another possession.
A 13-yard rush by senior Sparky Manis set up Alexander’s 58-yard touchdown pass to senior Justin Engle for a 28-0 lead with eight minutes remaining in the half.
Senior Bulldog Ryne Wheeler intercepted another Eagle pass on the 43. Drew Reed made two carries, and Alexander hit Gill for a 36-yard touchdown.
But the Bulldogs weren’t finished yet with the first half.
With a little more than four minutes remaining in the half, Alexander rushed for 10 in Frankton territory. Manis ran the ball to the four-yard line and made another 4-yard run into the end zone.
With Luke DesNoyers’ perfect extra-point kicks, the Bulldogs were up 42-0 with a few minutes remaining in the half.
Frankton’s best opportunity of the night came when 30 yards’ worth of penalties put the Eagles deep into Bulldog territory. But on another Eagle pass, Addington got an interception at the Eagle six-yard line and ran back for a touchdown — yet a block-in-the-back flag negated the pick six.
In the second half, another Frankton pass was intercepted, giving the Bulldogs the ball on the Eagle’s 28-yard line.
Freshman quarterback Brennan Stow came in for Alexander and handed the ball off to junior Josiah Scott, who took the ball into the end zone.
DesNoyers’ perfect kicking night continued, and the Bulldogs found themselves up 49-0.
Turnovers plagued Frankton all night; a Bulldog fumble recovery set up another possession and another score for Scott, making it 56-0.
Frankton couldn’t put up a score until the fourth quarter, when Josh Ebbert scored and Ward, on the keeper, made the 2-point conversion.
Kyle Shelton scored the final Bulldog touchdown in the fourth, and Frankton got another on the board for the final score of 62-16.
On the field, the Bulldogs were unstoppable while putting up 496 yards of offense, and defensively, Lapel nabbed four interceptions and a fumble recovery.
On Friday, Oct. 26, the Bulldogs play host to the sectional semifinal against Northeastern, which defeated Winchester in Round 1.
Lapel hasn’t faced the Knights, who are 6-4 and have a new coach after the previous coach resigned a few weeks ago for personal reasons.
Shane Berry is the Knights’ leading rusher with eight games this season with more than 100 yards. As a defensive squad, Northeastern has sacked its opponents’ quarterback 27 time this season.
Friday’s game kicks off at 7 p.m.
