Bartlett runs past Elgin
Smothering defense and a bruising running game was a winning formula for Bartlett.
Nick Deckard and Tyler Rivelli each ran for over 100 yards and 2 scores and the Hawks' defense held Elgin's offense scoreless in a 28-2 Upstate Eight victory at Memorial Field.
The Hawks started slowly, failing to take full advantage of some great early field position. But they broke the game open with back-to-back second-quarter scoring drives, set up by recovering an onside kick.
Deckard was the workhorse, carrying 34 times for 162 yards and a pair of 1-yard scoring runs. Rivelli added 112 yards on just 10 carries.
Their contributions were appreciated on a night when the Hawks just couldn't get their passing game untracked. Bartlett got its first and only completion of the night on the second play of the fourth quarter, a swing pass to Rivelli for a 3-yard gain.
A botched punt attempt by Elgin on the opening possession set the Hawks up in great field position at the 16-yard line. Aided by a pass-interference penalty, the Hawks cashed in, with Rivelli going in from 7 yards out.
An interception by Brian Segura gave Bartlett the ball in Elgin territory once again, but the Hawks couldn't move the ball and the drive ended with a missed field goal. Their third possession was stopped on downs in Maroons territory.
Bartlett finally got the run game going in the second quarter. Sixteen and 32-yard runs by Rivelli set up Deckard's first TD. Paige Bednarke shocked the Maroons with a perfectly executed onside kick. Jake Weihe recovered and the Hawks were back in business.
Deckard had carries of 11, 10, 13, 7 and 11 yards on the drive before finally diving over from the 1. That made it 21-0 at halftime and Elgin never recovered.
The Maroons reached the Bartlett 3-yard line in the fourth quarter but Giovani Griffin's fourth-down pass fell incomplete. Elgin got on the board, however, when Brandon Bridges dropped Deckard in the end zone on Bartlett's next play.
Bartlett's defense was outstanding. The Hawks held Elgin to 116 total yards and -4 rushing yards. Although the Maroons gained 120 yards through the air, their 2 quarterbacks combined to complete just 5 of 25 passes.
"I was proud of them tonight, they were flying around, going after the football," said Bartlett coach Matt Erlenbaugh of his defenders. "When you see 11 hats at the ball at the end of the whistle, that's always a good thing."
The Maroons' defense wasn't bad, either, but didn't get enough support from the offense.
"The defense played good," said Elgin coach Anthony Mason. "But the offense kept putting the defense in bad situations: Too many drives, too many runs, too many plays where they just couldn't withstand it."