It was an eventful day in the Carrier Dome, and the Orange wasn't even there.
Three Section III championship games were held at the Dome, and all three games provided plenty of excitement.
The noon game featured Skaneateles and Herkimer. No question, the Lakers had been waiting two years for this game. Remember, Skaneateles hasn't lost a football game since 2010, and it wasn't about to start now.
The Lakers raced to a 33-0 lead behind the arm of gunslinger Connor Herr who tossed five touchdown passes, four of which were hauled in by Jake Cooney. The Lakers rolled to a 33-16 win over Herkimer for the Class C Championship, the first football Section III title in school history.
In Class AA it was a battle of heavyweights. CBA, playing in its 4th straight title game met Baldwinsville, who had beat the Brothers in two of those appearances for the title. It was a back and forth battle throughout with Tyler Rouse spotting the Bees a three point lead at 24-21 just two minutes into the fourth quarter. Rouse finished with three touchdowns on the day. CBA, playing without star running back DeShawn Salter looked to Jonathan Stackhouse to put them back in front, and he did just that with a toss sweep for the score and a 28-24 lead. The Brothers added another touchdown when Joey Pascarella scored on a fumble return, completing the victory by a final of 35-24. It's the first Section III championship for CBA since 2005.
In Class B, Cazenovia's back on top of the heap as the Lakers outlasted Chittenango 35-21. This game, too, was close throughout, as a 14-14 halftime score evolved into a 21-14 Caz lead in the 4th quarter. Chittenango was knocking on the door, but Chad Warren came up with a timely interception in the end zone. That play was immediately followed by a 75 yard touchdown run from Jake Wilson that essentially put it out of reach for good as Caz captures the Section III Class B title.
