HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
Section VI football goes 3 for 3: Sweet Home, Southwestern, Maple Grove are champs
Panthers, Trojans win first titles; Red Dragons add another a decade later
It's three down, one to go for Section VI football.
Sweet Home, Southwestern and Maple Grove all won state championships Saturday and make history at Syracuse University's Carrier Dome.
Never before had a single section won more than two titles. Section VI went 3 for 3 on Saturday and it can add another Sunday afternoon. Orchard Park plays for its first Class AA championship at 1 p.m. Sunday when it takes on Monroe-Woodbury of Section IX (Orange County).
Go to the Prep Talk blog to review live blogging of the championships today and Sunday.
Sweet Home jumped to a 28-7 lead and came up with some clutch defensive stands and clock-killing drives in the fourth quarter to beat Section II (Albany area) champion Burnt Hills, 35-28. The game MVP went to senior quarterback Casey Kacz, who completed 11 of 15 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns; he bounced back from two interceptions to lead crucial drives late in the game, including the final drive to run out the clock.
Southwestern scored three touchdowns in a one-minute, 10-second span in the second quarter as the Trojans routed Section I (Westchester County) champion Croton-Harmon, 35-7, in the Class C title game. Junior quarterback Zack Sopak won the game MVP award after throwing for two touchdowns and running for another as the Trojans won their first state championship in any team sport.
Maple Grove rolled to its first state championship since 1998 with a 55-7 romp over Moriah of Section VII (Northern New York) in the Class D championship. Red Dragons junior quarterback Chris Secky earned MVP honors by throwing for three touchdowns and running for two more.
The News will have comprehensive coverage of the games in Sunday's and Monday's editions.
Check out the high school home page to review additional high school info, including preview stories on the state championships as well as game stories from the teams' playoff runs.
