The sweetest victory
Dunkirk stuns Cheektowaga; wins Class B title
![](https://ogden_images.s3.amazonaws.com/www.observertoday.com/images/2016/11/05235207/DHS-victory-1100x578.jpg)
OBSERVER Photo by Ron Szot The Dunkirk Marauders football team celebrates Saturday night following their 46-35 victory over Cheektowaga in the Section VI Class B finals held at New Era Field.
ORCHARD PARK — Champions!
Alton Ingram ran for 226 yards on 28 carries and three touchdowns Saturday night at New Era Field, as No. 4 Dunkirk (8-2) held off No. 2 Cheektowaga, 45-36, to earn its first-ever Section VI Class B football title.
After falling behind 14-0 on a 38-yard touchdown pass from Eric Bartnik to De’marrion McGinnis with 10:50 on the clock in the opening quarter, then a 4-yard run by Bartnik just 6:13 later, Ingram got the Marauders on the board with a 62-yard run with 4:19 left in the first quarter. The two-point conversion cut the Dunkirk deficit to 14-8, before the Warriors were forced to punt on the ensuing drive, giving the Marauders a drive start at its own 47-yard line.
Evon Hernandez then capped a 7-play, 57-yard drive with a 5-yard plunge into the end zone. And after he added the two-point conversion Dunkirk had its first lead, 16-14, with just one second left in the opening frame.
The second quarter went much the same as the first, as the Marauders and Warriors went back and forth on the scoreboard.
On its opening drive of the second frame, Cheektowaga needed just five plays before Bartnik found Stephan Parker from 26-yards out to help put the Warriors back up, 20-16, with 10:49 left before the break.
Dunkirk answered right away as Juan Damas raced in from 67-yards out on the first play of the ensuing drive to help give his team a 24-20 lead with 10:32 left in the second quarter.
A 12-play, 61-yard drive by the Warriors followed the Marauders’ short scoring drive, as Seven Turpin went in from 1-yard out, to help Cheektowaga regain the lead, 28-24, with 6:35 remaining in the second quarter, which was more than enough time for the Marauders to answer back.
However, a lead-changing score had to wait, as Dunkirk punted the ball down to the Cheektowaga 29-yard line, where, on the first play of the drive, the Warriors made their first crucial mistake of the night. Bartnik was intercepted by Tyreek Buchanan-Ruiz, giving the Marauders the ball back at Warriors’ 44-yard line.
From there, Dunkirk needed just three plays to regain the lead, as Ingram scored from 18-yards out. After Hernandez found Damas for the two-point conversion, Dunkirk held a 32-28 cushion with 1:44 remaining in the first half, where it would stand as the teams headed to the locker room for half time.
After rattling off big play after big play in the first half, Dunkirk went to a more methodical offensive approach to start the third quarter, as it did what it could to eat up as much time as possible. Although the result on the opening drive of the third quarter did not result in any points, it did take 6:22 off the clock, leaving Cheektowaga with a drive start at its own 12-yard line.
Then, three plays later, Dunkirk caught its second big break of the game, as Bartnik was intercepted by Jaziah Rivera, leaving the Marauders with good field position at the Warriors 48-yard line. And as it did on its first drive of the second half, Dunkirk went with a ground-and-pound approach, but this time it resulted in more than just time being taken off the clock, as Ingram found his way into the end zone from 10-yards out to help push the Marauders’ lead to 40-28 with 11:55 remaining in the fourth quarter.
A 14-play, 66-yard drive by the Warriors followed to help cut their deficit to 40-35 with 8:50 remaining in regulation. But that was as close as Cheektowaga would get Saturday night, as Dunkirk, as it did all night, had the answer it needed, this time coming on a 5-yard sweep to the left by Hernandez with 51 seconds left in the fourth quarter, which capped off a 17-play, 63-yard drive that will be remembered in the city of Dunkirk for years to come.
On that drive, which helped put the game out of reach at 46-35, the Marauders converted five third downs and two fourth downs, which helped Dunkirk bring home a long-awaited Sectional title.
NOTES: Damas finished the night with 107 yards on seven attempts while Hernandez added 45 yards on 14 carries… On the night, Dunkirk, the 20th-ranked team in the latest New York State Sportswriters Association Class B poll, rushed for 434 yards on 62 tries, which is believed to be a New Era Field record… Damas and Ingram led the Marauders’ defense with seven tackles each while Dontrell Clemons chipped in 5.5 tackles and two sacks… Bartnik went 24 or 39 for 128 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for Cheektowaga, which entered the game as the No. 2 Class B team in the NYSSWA poll.