In what was a very important game for both teams, the Bethlehem Eagles used a second-half surge to take down the Ballston Spa Scotties 28-13 on Friday night. The Eagles scored 22 unanswered points after trailing 7-6 at halftime to take a 28-7 lead, and would hold onto it for the win.
The game began as a tough defensive battle. Ballston received the ball first and went 3-and-out, and punted. Bethlehem got across midfield, but turned it over after failing to pick up a 4th down conversion. Ballston took over deep in their own territory, but fumbled on the first play after a low snap got past Scotties QB Christian Leva. Bethlehem was faced with a 4th-and-2 from the Ballston 19, and QB David Montalvo found receiver Dylan Rodriguez in the end zone for the first score of the game. The extra point would miss, and Bethlehem took a 6-0 lead. This would stand to be the score after a quarter.
The Scotties defense held strong again the 2nd quarter, forcing Bethlehem to turn it over on downs 2 more times. After the third turnover on downs, Ballston took over at their own 28, and on 3rd-and-10, Leva threw one up to senior receiver Jason Kavanaugh, who went up and caught the ball over a defender, and sprinted the rest of the way untouched into the end zone. The 72-yard touchdown strike would give Ballston their first lead of the season, at 7-6. This would be the score at the half.
Bethlehem came out firing in the second half, however. They received the ball first, and the drive led to a 4th-and goal from the Ballston 2, and Montalvo found Rodriguez in the end zone again, and the Eagles reclaimed the lead. They would go for the 2-point conversion, and not get it, making the score 12-7 Bethlehem. Later in the quarter, with the Scotties pinned deep in their own territory, a high snap went over the head of Christian Leva, who fell on it in the end zone for a safety. This extended Bethlehem’s lead to 14-7.
In the 4th, after Leva’s second interception of the game, and a personal foul on Ballston, Bethlehem took over at the Scotties 27, and Montalvo found Dylan Rodriguez for the 3rd time in the game, and extended the Eagles’ lead to 21-7. The ensuing drive also resulted in a Leva interception, but with a much worse result. Steve Mendleson grabbed the interception and raced all the way back to the end zone for a pick-6, giving Bethlehem a 28-7 lead. After another great catch by Kavanaugh set up 1st-and-goal, Leva took it himself into the end zone from 5 yards out. Ballston would fake the extra point and go for 2, but it would not succeed. This cut Bethlehem’s lead to 28-13, which would hold as the final score.
For Ballston, the game had some encouraging points, but overall was disappointing. The 3 interceptions and the fumble proved costly for Ballston, as the Eagles scored 20 of their points off turnovers, including the pick-6. Ballston drops to 0-3 with the loss. For Bethlehem, it was a huge win for them, as they rebounded from a 32-14 loss to Troy last week to improve to 2-1 following this week’s win. Ballston will go on the road to face off against Guilderland (2-0, will play Albany this Saturday). Bethlehem will go back home to host Columbia (2-1) in another big game.
