KANE — It’s a cliche that’s been used to describe football games for decades: “A tale of two halves.”
But, for Bradford’s offense, a stagnant second stanza followed an explosive, efficient first half. And, after Kane bookended halftime with a touchdown on each side of the break, the Owls never recovered.
Kane’s rushing attack bruised Bradford on the ground while the Wolves slowed quarterback Elijah Fitton and the Owls down the stretch on their way to a 32-18 victory at Paul R. Miller Stadium.
“I think it was more us than them,” Bradford coach Jeff Puglio said. “We had a lot of confidence playing offense in the first half and just couldn’t really piece anything together in the second half.”
Of Fitton’s 287 passing yards, 258 of them came in the first half. He led a dominant, economical touchdown drive on Bradford’s opening possession before connecting with receivers Dalton Dixon and Lucas Laktash for big plays late in the half.
The Owls couldn’t replicate the big-play magic after halftime, however, going three-and-out on four drives while their other two offensive possessions ended in interceptions.
“We just couldn’t get into a rhythm,” Puglio said. “We had a rhythm going in the first half, left some points on the field still, but I thought we played better in the red zone.”
To combat Bradford’s explosiveness, Kane coach Todd Silfies made an effort to put more defensive speed on the field in the second half. Sam West, a nickel-type defensive back, helped tighten the Wolves’ secondary.
“We got some run-thumping linebackers off the field and got in (West), he was able to get into the game and play a little bit of coverage,” Silfies said. “We got him on a couple of blitzes to try to get after (Fitton) because he was scrambling all over us in the first half. We just needed to get more speed on the field and just clean up a couple of our coverages that we weren’t really functioning in correctly in the first half.”
Kane’s rushing attack powered its offense throughout the night. While Bradford moved the ball with passes, both short and long, Kane found success on the ground.
“They were beating us inside,” Puglio said. “We were just getting eaten alive inside. They were a little grabby, and sometimes you just don’t get those calls. You’ve got to be able to fight off holds.”
The Wolves benefitted from several receptions on contested passes, as well. Ricky Zamponga caught a jump ball in the end zone on the last play of the first half to put Kane up 20-18, the last time Bradford would see the lead.
“We didn’t show up defensively early,” Puglio said. “We spotted them 20 points, and that’s a good team. Well-coached, disciplined, and when you give them 20 points it’s going to be very hard, especially (in Kane).”
Shane Ackley made several key plays for Kane, including a 33-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter and an interception of Fitton in the third. Zampogna and Addison Plants each added a rushing touchdown, as well.
“I thought that we got it done up front,” Silfies said. “We made a couple of adjustments on our offensive line after last week and I think they paid off for us. We’ve got a crew of running backs that are running hard.”
Meanwhile, Fitton finished 21-of-33 passing for three touchdowns and two interceptions, one on a desperation pass on Bradford’s final possession.
Dixon made five receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown while Laktash hauled in six catches for 135 yards and two scores, including a 72-yard strike on which he out-ran the entirety of Kane’s defense.
Laktash had missed last week’s game against St. Marys due to COVID-19 exposure. Puglio was pleased to have him back in Kane.
“He’s a spark plug,” Puglio said. “No matter what he’s doing, he’s playing hard. We got him back later in the week from his quarantine, so we were trying to get him back up to speed, and I thought he did really well tonight.”
Now 0-3, Bradford will return home next Friday to play undefeated Ridgway.
“We’ve got a tall task next week, so we’ve got to have a good week of practice,” Puglio said. “If we practice how we did last week, we’ll have similar results.”
Meanwhile, Kane improved to 2-1, responding strongly to last week’s double-digit loss to Ridgway.
“When they came in Monday morning for film review, I was just really proud of the way they came to work,” Silfies said. “And a ton of credit to Bradford for their grit and the direction they have their program headed. But if we have kids that are willing to work and get better every day, I think we can do some things with that.”
