HS Football: Susquehanna cashes in on Holy Cross' turnovers
Oct. 2—DUNMORE — Susquehanna turned Holy Cross' mistakes into points Saturday.
The Sabers recovered three first-half fumbles inside the Holy Cross 30-yard-line and converted all three into touchdowns to roll to a 45-0 win in a Lackawanna Football Conference Division III game at Monsignor Crotti Field.
Susquehanna (3-3, 1-0) was forced to punt on its first possession but the returner fumbled the kick, giving the Sabers possession at the Holy Cross 24. On the next play, Colton Stone hit Cooper Payne on a slant and Payne ran away from defenders for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead.
A short punt gave Susquehanna the ball at the Holy Cross 36. Three penalties backed up the Sabers into third-and-38, but they converted when Stone and Payne connected on a 39-yard completion. Four plays later, Layne Fisk scored on a 10-yard run to give Susquehanna a 13-0 lead.
"We preached this week trying to get up early, get a lead, even getting a couple of turnovers," Susquehanna coach Kyle Cook said. "Not giving them the ball because if you give a team like that confidence, they can rip off a couple of runs and we're in a tight game."
William Marcy had a 40-yard touchdown run on Susquehanna's next possession. The sophomore ran up the middle and broke free in the secondary.
"I just follow my instincts," Marcy said. "Wherever my instincts take me, I'm going."
Midway through the second quarter, Holy Cross fumbled and Susquehanna recovered at the Crusaders 4. Fisk ran the ball in for a touchdown on Susquehanna's first play for a 26-0 lead. Marcy added a 21-yard touchdown run on Susquehanna's next drive and finished with 121 yards and two touchdowns while Fisk also had two touchdown runs.
"Marcy is a strong young kid inside the tackles and Layne has the speed on the outside so it's a nice two-punch combination to have," Cook said.
Holy Cross (0-6, 0-1) fumbled the ball away on its next drive and Susquehanna took over at the Crusaders 27. Four plays later, Kaleb Shimer scored on a 12-yard run to give Susquehanna a 39-0 lead with 1:05 left in the first half.
"It was huge," Cook said. "That's what killed us last week. We gave them a short field so many times and it's a lot easier to score when you're going from 30 yards instead of 70."
Meanwhile Susquehanna's defense held Holy Cross to 51 yards rushing and three first downs to pitch the shutout.
"I was impressed," Cook said. "(Holy Cross' Logan) Tierney is a strong running back and being able to hold him to not many yards in the first half, not giving him those extra first downs and things helped us get the ball back and put points on the board."
