Lumberjacks football rout Ti in playoff matchup

The Lumberjacks ran for an eye-opening 542 yards as a team and added seven touchdowns on the ground en route to a 64-8 victory over the Ticonderoga Sentinels in the first-ever Section VII-X 8-man football playoff game at Frank Tice Memorial Field.

Tupper Lake’s Sean Bujold led the way with 182 yards on 19 carries while scoring one touchdown. Teammates Luke Robillard and Brayden Shannon each had three touchdowns and compiled over 100 yards on the ground. Robillard had 161 yards on nine attempts, while Shannon had 116 on five runs.

Lumberjacks head coach Dennis Klossner said his team has a lot of weapons on the offensive side of the ball, and they’ve been working hard all season.

“They’re hard hitting and are the heart of the team,” he said. “They play well together, they play as a group and as family and they love the game of football, and it shows.”

Tupper Lake’s Wyatt Godin runs for a successful 2-point conversion attempt during Friday’s game against Ticonderoga. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

Tupper Lake scored touchdowns on all seven of its drives in the first half to take a 50-0 lead at the intermission. It’s the first-time since 2011 that the Lumberjacks have scored 50 or more points in a game.

Robillard scored the first two touchdowns on runs of 26 and 25 yards, while Shannon added the next two on a 40-yard carry and a 30-yard run. The duo also accounted for the next two scores with Robillard running 47 yards for the score and Shannon adding his third touchdown on a 15-yard run.

Bujold added the final touchdown before halftime on a 10-yard run. Klossner credited the offensive line for its play, leading to the big deficit.

“They open holes for them all day. It’s really nice. They do a really good job,” he said.

After the break, the Lumberjacks picked up where they left off, scoring on their first drive of the second half on an 11-yard run by Kyler McClain. The Sentinels defense finally held them to a three-and-out punt right before the end of third quarter.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Lumberjacks were just as dominant, halting nearly all of Ticonderoga’s promising drives. Late in the fourth quarter, the Sentinels marched all the way to the Tupper Lake 7-yard line, but Wyatt Godin stripped the ball away and ran 95 yards the other way for the score.

“Defensively, they are just amazing,” Klossner said. “They’re ball hawks, they find the ball, they love to hit. I’m real proud of our defense, too. We’re a great defensive team.”

Garrett Pelkey, who is moving to Beekmantown and won’t finish the season with the team, led Tupper Lake with 13 tackles. Robillard had nine tackles and one sack, while Karter Kenniston had six tackles and one pass defended.

Godin, the Lumberjacks quarterback, had a relatively quiet night in terms of passing, completing just one of his three pass attempts for 11 yards.

“We haven’t utilized our passing game as much as I would have been hoping to, because Cohen Gerstenberger has good hands beside Pelkey and even Liam McClain,” Klossner said. “We just haven’t been able to because when I get up, I’m not one that’s going to keep hammering it out.”

Dom Crossman scored the Sentinels lone touchdown with 7:01 left in the fourth quarter, and teammarte Tyler McTyler ran in the 2-point conversion attempt.

McTyler was a bright spot for Ticonderoga, recording 157 yards on 24 attempts. Teammate Skyler Frasier had 68 yards on 13 carries, while also hauling in two receptions for 30 yards.

Following the playoff victory, the Lumberjacks, which improved to 7-1 overall, will take on the Section IV 8-man football champion in the next round of the playoffs. The Sentinels end their season with a 2-7 record.

“It’s just great to be able to have a playoff game on a home field,” Klossner said. “I always liked the home field playoff games instead of neutral site playoffs. It was great. It was exciting, and the kids were up for it, and the weather held off for the most part.”

While both the date and time of the next playoff contest are yet to be determined, the Lumberjacks will travel for its next contest, according to Klossner.

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Tupper Lake 64, Ticonderoga 8

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Sentinels 0 0 0 8 — 8

Lumberjacks 20 30 6 8 — 64

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SCORING

First quarter

TL — Robillard 26 run (Godin run), 00:58

TL — Robillard 25 run (Pass failed), 5:47

TL — Shannon 40 run (Pass failed), 8:40

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Second quarter

TL — Shannon 30 run (Robillard run), 1:47

TL — Robillard 47 run (Bujold run), 2:12

TL — Shannon 15 run (K. McClain run), 4:13

TL — Bujold 10 run (Run failed), 9:20

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Third quarter

TL — K. McClain 11 run (Run failed), 6:08

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Fourth quarter

TL — Godin 95 fumble recovery (Bujold run), 5:02

Ti — Crossman 1 run (McTyler run), 7:01

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Individual statistics

RUSHING

TL — Bujold 19-182, TD; Robillard 9-161, 3TDs; Shannon 5-116, 3TDs; K.McClain 5-29, TD; Godin 3-32; Kenniston 1-19; Fleishman 1-3. Totals 43-542, 7TDs.

Ti — McTyler 24-157; Frasier 13-68; LaPointe 1-0; Brown 1-(-1); Dorsett 1-(-4); Crossman 3-3, TD; Team: 1-(-2). Totals: 44-221, TD.

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PASSING

TL — Godin 1-3-0-11.

Ti — Dorsett 2-13-0-30.

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RECEIVING

TL — L. McClain 1-11.

Ti — Frasier 2-30.

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DEFENSIVE

TL — Pelkey 13 tackles; Robillard 9 tackles, 1 sack; Kenniston 6 tackles, 1 pass defended; Bujold 4 tackles; Gerstenberger 3 tackles, 2 passes defended; Shannon 3 tackles, 1 pass defended; K. McClain 3 tackles; LaValley 3 tackles; L. McClain 2 tackles, 1 pass defended; Dattola 1 tackle; Callaghan 1 tackle, Bencze 1 tackle.