Lockport pounces on Niagara Falls turnovers, penalties in shutout win

Sep. 25—Niagara Falls had the edge in the stat book, but Lockport had the advantage on the scoreboard.

The Wolverines outgained the Lions 293-222 and had the edge in big plays, but Lockport capitalized on 125 yards in accepted penalties and four turnovers to shutout Niagara Falls 14-0 on Saturday at Max D. Lederer Stadium.

Although the Wolverines bested the Lions 16-7 on plays of 10 yards or more, Lockport used two explosive plays to decide the outcome of the game. Newly converted receiver Takhi West hit Anthony Bowman for a 67-yard touchdown and Ryan Winters found Shey Williams for a 23-yard scoring strike, both coming in the second quarter.

"We teach character and character comes along with just doing your job," Lockport head coach Trait Smith said. "I teach, 'You know what's right, do what's right.' All week long we preached that, the kids came out and did what they had to do. They're learning and getting better every week."

One of Lockport's favorite plays is the jet sweep, but it was limited by the Niagara Falls defense and sophomore quarterback Ryan Winters was forced to throw the ball outside or down the field in his first career start after taking over midway through a Week 3 loss to Jamestown.

Winters finished the game 13 of 18 for 139 yards, with his only blemish being an ill-advised interception in the end zone on a fourth down play in the third quarter. He also had strong security outlets in Williams (three receptions for 88 yards) and Bowman (six grabs for 79 yards).

"We've put (Winters) in two big venues," Smith said. "He's getting better. He's learning and that's what we need. Every kid's got to learn."

But for the first time this season, Lockport met a team that could match its speed. Niagara Falls came up with a superb defensive game plan that negated the Lions' ability to hit the edge, resulting in holding them to 16 yards on 18 attempts, preventing sustained drives throughout the game.

"It was scheme — we were prepared for them," Niagara Falls head coach Don Bass said. "We knew what they were doing, we watched film and we were prepared for them. We knew that if we slid out our speed could match theirs and if we could keep them inside, speed would catch up."

The Wolverines were also able to move the ball on the ground, running for 140 yards and 6.1 yards per carry (excluding sack yardage). But penalties stunted drives or prolonged Lockport possessions.

Niagara Falls (0-4) had multiple chunk plays called back on penalties and even jumped offsides when the Lions lined up to go for it on fourth and 2 from their own 12 yard line. In total, the Wolverines committed 14 penalties, including five 15-yard calls.

The penalties put Niagara Falls in precarious down and distances, forcing it to bail at times on the run game that worked so well. After falling to Frontier 13-12 last week, Bass feels his team outplayed the opponent and lost for the second consecutive game.

"(Penalties) flip the game," Bass said. "It doesn't allow them to do what I want them to do. I know they were going to blitz off the edge, so we could power up the gut. But if we don't pop one, we're eating too much clock."

While the Wolverines provided some assistance, Lockport remained disciplined on defense, especially when quarterback Tyris Parmer broke the pocket. The plan was to keep the slippery Parmer between the tackles, but it was often futile.

The Lions were still able to stick to receivers during those plays often enough. Karmyne Jones stepped in front of a Parmer pass on the run. Midway through the fourth quarter, Parmer was pinned by his sideline and reared back to heave a pass that traveled to the middle of the field and was picked off by Bowman in the end zone.

When Niagara Falls was able to complete passes, Lockport didn't allow receivers to break loose for huge gains, including one play where a defender poked the ball from the grasp of Jayden Hilson and John Stigimeier recovered at his own 4.

Not only did the Lions come up with a much-needed win to pull to .500 on the season, but the defense earned a shutout a week after surrendering 55 points. It's just the third time Lockport has posted a shutout since 2015.

"They say defense wins championships," Jones said. "If they can't score, we win."

Parmer finished 10 of 24 for 153 yards and two interceptions, while Quadir Hill had 59 yards on 11 carries, while Emmanuel Williams had 73 yards from scrimmage.

Lockport travels to Williamsville North at 7 p.m. Friday, while Niagara Falls heads to Jamestown at 7 p.m. Friday.

Nick Sabato can be reached via email at nick.sabato@gnnewspaper.com or on Twitter @NickSabatoGNN.