VOORHEESVILLE — They call him Waterbug because he is short in stature but quick, like the character in the movie The Longest Yard.

But again, Pat Jones came up big for the Voorheesville football team.

Jones rushed for three touchdowns to counter another stellar defensive effort and lead the Blackbirds to a 23-7 win over Stillwater in the Class C quarterfinals on Saturday.

Stillwater was the number-one seed and Voorheesville was the number eight and final seed in a class that many proclaim as the deepest of all time. The Blackbirds will be making their second trip of the season to Chatham to take on their Class C South Division rivals. The Panthers won the first meeting, 27-21, in a hard-played but bizarre game.
"We want to go all the way," Jones said after the game Saturday. "We try our best and work hard every week. I had huge holes. The line did an awesome job. Without them, we would not be where we are today."
"In the second half, he hit the holes," Voorheesville Coach Joseph Sapienza said. "Sometimes he tries for the 97-yard run instead of picking up six or seven at a time. He hit the hole and hit it hard."

The other key for the Blackbirds was their usual hard-hitting stout defense. Voorheesville bottled up the rushing attack of Stillwater and its stud running back Matt Grayson.

Grayson’s longest run of the day ended in a fumble that was recovered by the Blackbirds. He finished with 81 yards on 18 carries but had a net average of zero yards on his first six carries.

Jones finished the contest with 172 yards rushing.
"We keyed on their tailback," Sapienza said. "I knew if we could take that away from Stillwater, we could beat them."

Defensive struggle

The game began as a defensive struggle as both teams scored zero points in the first quarter. The Voorheesville defense had a big stand in that frame.

A Blackbird fumble at Voorheesville’s own seven-yard line was recovered by Stillwater. But Voorheesville stopped the Warriors on four plays, including an eight-yard loss by Vinny Barber on a terrific tackle by Adam Duncan. The fourth down pass fell incomplete and the Blackbirds dodged a major bullet.

Then the Birds took advantage and moved the ball down the field using the running of Jones and the passing of Jay Conde. Voorheesville moved the ball down to the Stillwater three-yard line but a sack dropped them back 10 yards.

The Birds got points on the board on a 30-yard field goal by Cameron Taylor to take a 3-0 lead.

Voorheesville turned the ball over late in the second quarter after an interception by Grady Edwards.

The pick put the ball on the Voorheesville 49-yard line and the Warriors moved the ball.

On third down, Barber completed a pass to Henry Evans for about three yards, but a late hit penalty gave Stillwater 15 more yards, enough for a first down.

Voorheesville’s defense made two big plays — a 14-yard sack by Charlie McGrail and an incomplete pass — but Stillwater had one more chance.

As the final seconds of the half wound down, Barber found Edwards with a pass in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown. With no time on the clock, Barber kicked the extra point and the score was 7-3 at the half.

"All the way"

Voorheesville got a big break early in the third quarter, a fumble on a hand-off on a reverse play.

Dan Flynn pounced on the ball for the Blackbirds at the Stillwater 27-yard line.

It took two plays for Conde to score his first touchdown of the day and give the Blackbirds the lead.

The two-point conversion pass failed but the Blackbirds led, 9-7, with 6:42 left in the third frame.

Stillwater turned the ball over on its next possession. Grayson was on his biggest run of the game — for 20 yards — when he got hit by linebacker Steven Cardinal and fumbled the ball. Duncan recovered the ball at his own 31-yard line.

Six plays later, Jones ran for another touchdown — this one for 20 yards — and Taylor added the extra point to make the score 16-7. The drive was kept alive with a diving catch by Chris Massaroni on third down.

Voorheesville scored again early in the fourth quarter on a 41-yard run by Jones. The extra-point was good and the Birds led, 23-7. They held on for the win even without Conde, who left the game after getting hit hard in the fourth quarter.
"I think he bruised his ribs," Sapienza said. "He took a good shot."

But it was the defense that kept Stillwater off guard all day long.
"Our defense had done it all year," Sapienza said. "They have put us in position to win every game. We settled down in the second half. Our offense has peaks and valleys."

The defensive line controlled the line of scrimmage and made it difficult for the Warriors to get their vaunted running game going. Sapienza credited the play of Sam Pelham, Sean Fitzmaurice, Charlie McGrail, and Jeff Connors for dominating the Stillwater offensive line.

The Blackbirds overcame what could have been a devastating play at the end of the first half.
"We talked at halftime about executing well," Jones said.
"I think that could have been a deflating moment," Sapienza said. "Walking off the field, we were worried that would deflate us. All season long, we had tough moments. Even the games we lost, we had tough moments. But I’m not worried about this group of kids. I knew they would not stop playing."

While most eight seeds beating a number-one seed would be considered an upset, this Class C pool is very competitive. Voorheesville’s two losses have been by a touchdown to two of the teams that will play in the semifinals this weekend.
"We want to set a tone," Jones said. "I think people underestimated us as a number-eight seed. People didn’t think we were as good as we are.
"We want to go all the way," Jones added. "We’ll practice hard every day, all week long to get there."