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ahead all night.
Midway through the second quarter, Farmington’s Orlando Ortiz ripped off a 20-yard run, but RHAM
defender Tyler Ware wasn’t satisfied just to make a tackle. He stood Ortiz up, stripped the ball and RHAM recovered on its own 19-yard line.
On the next play, Ware pitched a 64-yard pass to teammate Tyler Hopson to the Farmington 17. Two plays later, Ben Schadtle high stepped through the heart of the Indian defense for a 10-yard touchdown run and a 6-0 lead.
Late in the second quarter, Farmington had the ball on the RHAM 1-yard line with 1.8 seconds left but a blitzing Joe Kearns hit Indian QB Steve Harrington to force a fumble and end the threat.
"Our whole theme this week was to establish physicality on both sides of the ball," said RHAM coach Pete Calin. "They worked hard in the weight room."
Farmington (0-3) had its chances, but hurt itself repeatedly with penalties, being flagged nine times
for 90 yards. It’s the first 0-3 start since 1994 for the Indians.
"We’re playing well enough to win," Farmington coach Jeff Bemis said. "But we’re hurting ourselves in big situations and we’re accepting mediocre play. The real world won’t accept that. If you do poorly in your job, you’ll get fired. They need to pull together and get it right instead of failing to correct mistakes."
The tone was set early. Ortiz (15-73) was dropped for a three-yard loss on the first play of the game. On
RHAM’s first drive, they ate up nearly six minutes. The Sachems took a 6-0 lead on Schadtle’s 10-yard TD
run in the second quarter.
Despite six penalties for 55 yards, Farmington was able to march 58 yards to its own 1-yard line in the
final seconds of the second quarter. Harrington converted a key fourth and inches play to keep the drive alive with 4:15 left in the half and completed a 23-yard pass to Domingo Astiasaran to the FHS 1 with 12.3 seconds left. Harrington spiked the ball to give the Indians a chance at the end zone but Kearns’
pressure forced the fumble to end the half.
In the second half, RHAM marched 67 yards on 13 plays eating up seven minutes. The Sachems scored on Schadtle’s 3-yard run, breaking several tackles on the way, for a 12-0 lead.
RHAM had several big plays. On third-and-28 on their own 19, Ware scrambled and fought his way for a 24-yard gain. On fourth-and-4 from the 43, Ware ran inside for seven yards and a first down.
And when Farmington did stop them, penalties hurt. On 3rd-and-9 on the Farmington 34, Ware’s incomplete pass should’ve ended the drive but Farmington was called for pass interference to keep the drive alive.
Farmington cut the lead to five early in the fourth quarter, 12-7. Sacks from Jason Kim and Dan Ray backed RHAM to the Sachem 8. After a 29-yard punt, the Indians took over on RHAM 37. Harrington (12-22-1, 174) completed a 27-yard pass to Astiasaran to the Farmington 6. Five plays later, Harrington hit Marc Wilson on a 9-yard slant on fourth and goal for the touchdown.
But RHAM responded immediately with a 75-yard touchdown drive. On 3rd and 12 from its own 48, the Sachems completed a pass for minus two yards. But Farmington was penalized 15 yards for a facemask at the end of the play. Three plays later, Keili Lane rambled through a crowd for a 16-yard TD run and a 19-7 lead.
Schadtle (14-83) had a key 13-yard run to start the drive and a 20-yard run through the heart of the FHS defense to get RHAM inside the 20-yard line. Not bad for a player with a strained hamstring.
"Last year, I used to juke more," he said. "This summer I worked on my legs so I can run through people now. Later in the game, I just open up with my speed."
