On a night more fitting for ducks, the Lake Orion Varsity Football Team welcomed back Homecoming alumni with a 28-0 win over OAA-I-foe Troy, giving the Dragons their sixth win and an automatic spot in the Michigan High School Athletic Association State Playoffs.
Facing 25 mile-per-hour winds and a driving rain, the 6-0 (4-0 OAA I) Lake Orion team played a conservative offensive game and continued to dominate defensively on Friday for their third straight shut-out. The Dragons and the Colts played to a 0-0 deadlock in the first quarter, until Lake Orion began to open their game up in the second, as senior quarterback Nate Recknagel found Brian Hewitt for a 15-yard scoring pass.
Later in the quarter, Recknagel hit Ryan Kelly for a 37-yard scoring strike. Recknagel’s extra point gave the Dragons a 14-0 halftime advantage.
After intermission, the Dragons stopped Troy’s first possession and put together a nine-minute and 20-second, 77-yard, 17-play drive, with a 17-yard scoring run by Roger Allison. Lake Orion finished their scoring early in the fourth with a 13-yard-Andy Miller touchdown scamper.
On the night, Recknagel completed eight of 12 pass attempts for 156 yards and two touchdowns, and was 4-for-4 on extra point attempts. Allison led the Dragons’ ground attack with 124 yards on 35 carries, while Kelly hauled in two catches for 44 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, the Dragons’ shutout was preserved thanks to touchdown-saving tackles by Jeremy White in the first quarter and Devin Patten in the fourth, as well as a key interception by Chase Moore.
Those returning to Lake Orion for homecoming festivities found their Dragon Football Program in great shape, with the freshman, junior varsity and varsity programs combining for an 18-0 record this season, each in first place of their respective league-title races.
The Lake Orion Freshman Team knocked off Troy on Oct. 2, 35-7, while the junior varsity team handled the Colts 21-14.
The Dragon Freshman squad, with nearly 70 players, coached by Andy Schramek, have dominated their opponents throughout the season, and have been able to provide significant playing and development time for all their players.
The junior varsity team, coached by Ryan Irish, have also been able to play nearly all of their 39 athletes in each game. Both Schramek and Irish attribute their successes this season to solid team efforts, with no one athlete standing out from the rest.
Irish said of his junior varsity players, “It’s been a fun season so far because everyone on this team truly loves football. They enjoy practice and enjoy playing their games.”
All three Dragon football teams now begin the toughest part of the year, beginning this week with Farmington Harrison, Rochester Adams the following week and closing out the regular season with Clarkston.
The freshman and junior varsity teams play at home on Thursday, with the freshman game at 4:30 p.m. and the JV immediately following at approximately 7 p.m.
The varsity team travels to Farmington Hills Harrison, tied with Orion and Clarkston for the OAA Division I lead last week. Game time is 7 p.m. Harrison is coming off a dramatic 13-12 win over Rochester Adams. The Dragons look to avenge their only regular season loss of 2002, in overtime, to Harrison.