VOORHEESVILLE — Voorheesville and Mechanicville were allergic to scoring a touchdown or even reaching the red zone for most of last Saturday’s Class C Central match-up that would determine first place. Well into the second half, both defensive lines started to give way just enough for scoring to become a possibility.

It was overwhelmingly apparent that neither team would be OK with suffering its first loss of the season; the game seemed like a staring contest.

The Blackbirds were the first to score on a 29-yard field goal by Mickey Knight; the ball cleared the crossbar by a few inches. Later, Voorheesville lost a fumble, then Voorheesville’s Robert Denman made a leaping interception only to fumble the ball back to Mechanicville on the run back, and then both teams had an offensive drive sputter out because the defense hadn’t played dumb all day.

With Section 2’s leading rusher, Chase DeLossantos, on its side and hungry for yards, the Red Raiders decided to get something going with under 6:43 remaining in regulation play. On third down, DeLossantos busted through a hole, and then made a cut for a 35-yard gain and Mechanicville’s first trip to the red zone.

From there, DeLossantos kept battling for extra yards with brute strength, and eventually punched through for a three-yard touchdown. Mechanicville led, 7 to 3, with 2:23 left on the clock.

Since Voorheesville practices the two-minute drill at every practice, this was the perfect opportunity to apply it. This was a glory moment for senior quarterback Robert Denman and his offense, and they did not disappoint the home crowd.

“He executes that as well as the rest of our offense,” Voorheesville Head Coach Joe Sapienza said of Denman after the 10-to-7 victory. “Boy, did we need it today.”

The Birds started at its own 32-yard line, and running back Matt Feller was dropped for a loss on a pitch play. Next, Denman passed up the middle of the field, and the Raiders’ Timothy Fleming deflected the ball with his hand, landing directly into the hands of receiver Scott Roney for a first down near midfield.

Mechanicville seemed to be caught off guard by Voorheesville’s quickness to the line, and Denman passed to Knight for 11 yards at the sideline, which stopped the clock. The Birds hurried to the line again, and Denman threw a pass downfield for Shane Parry, but the Raiders’ Brandon Russell was flagged for pass interference.

Almost everyone on Mechanicville’s side — coaches, fans, and players — were yelling at the referees as the ball was spotted on Mechanicville’s 20-yard line.

Denman completed another pass to Knight, and then ran it himself on the next play down to the three-yard line with 1:01 remaining in the game. Feller, who had 75 rush yards on Saturday, finished off the impressive drive by falling into the end zone.

“That’s every day at practice for us, going hurry up,” Denman said after the win. “That’s what we do; we know what to do. We make it a natural thing so, when the game situation comes, we’re ready for it.”

Mechanicville had one last chance as its side continued to complain about the previous pass interference penalty. The Voorheesville defense — led by the tackling of Andrew Waldbillig, Mike McGinnis, and David Cardona — swallowed up Russell and his receivers, and the game was over.

Sapienza couldn’t say enough about the Blackbirds’ final drive. “The balls got out quickly, underneath the coverage on the one-on-ones, and close to the sidelines,” he said. “If we weren’t moving the sticks on the sidelines, our boys were getting up before they ran the clock.”

Voorheesville didn’t play a great game, said Sapienza, but he believes that his team refused to lose on Saturday. “We were bound and determined to win, and that’s why we won,” he said.

Mechanicville started to put double coverage on receiver George Bernhard, so that may have led to some questionable calls for the Birds on third or fourth down. “It was kind of like a guessing game, maybe I could catch them, and Feller is a guy that only needs to break one tackle,” Sapienza said. “Maybe I out-thought myself.”

Denman was proud of Voorheesville (3-0) being the only undefeated Class C Central team left, and was already looking forward to playing Taconic Hills (1-2) this Saturday.

“I’m confident in my team; we all have each other’s backs, and it started during double sessions,” said Denman after beating Mechanicville. “We learned how to come together as a team, and that really showed today.”

Before heading off the field, all the Voorheesville players raised their hands and shouted, “Champions!” Sapienza said that he told his players that they couldn’t do that chant again until the season is over.

“We have to keep working and take this to the next level; there’s a lot more to go,” said Sapienza. “We want to win the division, sectionals, and States. That’s our goal.”