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Trojans Back On Winning Track Down Olean

Southwestern quarterback Aidan Kennedy dives towards the end zone for a touchdown in the second quarter of the Trojans’ 48-14 victory over Olean on Friday night. P-J photo by Valory S. Isaacson

It’s been a long time since Southwestern has started a season 0-2.

More than 20 years.

Senior quarterback Aidan Kennedy made sure the Trojans didn’t start 0-3 Friday night.

Kennedy threw for 244 yards and a touchdown, and ran for 85 yards and three more scores as Southwestern beat Olean 48-14 in its home opener at Charles A. Lawson Field.

“It’s not the way we normally start out. We’re not used to that,” Southwestern head coach Jake Burholder said. “They bounced back today and played Trojan football the way we know they can play.”

Southwestern’s Jameson Walsh finds the end zone with Olean’s Julius Childs in pursuit during Friday’s nonleague game at Charles A. Lawson Field. P-J photo by Valory S. Isaacson

The Trojans lost their first two games on the road in the final seconds at Iroquois and Salamanca.

Seconds after halftime Friday, it was apparent that wouldn’t be the case again.

Neves Hoose mishit the opening kickoff after the break and Southwestern recovered the ball at the Huskies’ 44-yard line. After a penalty, Kennedy found an open Jason Ni for a 49-yard touchdown pass and Hoose added his third of six successful point-after kicks to make it 27-7 in favor of the hosts.

“That was not called. … Sometimes those things work out in your favor,” Burkholder said. “Coming out of the half and getting a big stop or scoring is huge.”

That was plenty for Kennedy and sophomore running back Jameson Walsh, who had a breakout game with 17 carries for 156 yards and three touchdowns of his own.

“We’re trying to get him the ball and let him make plays,” Kennedy said of Walsh. “He’ll be a crucial player for this program for the next couple of years.”

The Trojans — who might not have the quick-strike scoring offense of recent teams — opened the game with a 10-play, 63-yard drive that consumed 5 minutes and 28 seconds off the clock. The drive was kept alive by a 27-yard completion from Kennedy to Walsh on fourth-and-6 from the 44-yard line, and was capped by a 4-yard run by Kennedy.

Southwestern put together a 12-play drive on its next possession, which carried into the second quarter. On second-and-6 from the Trojans’ 33-yard line, Kennedy connected with Matt Pannes for a 38-yard catch down to the Olean 29-yard line. Eight plays later, Walsh plunged into the end zone from 2 yards out for a 13-0 lead.

“It takes the pressure off me, not having to do as much,” Kennedy said, “having a running back like that running his butt off, lowering his shoulder and running guys over.”

The Huskies answered on their next drive. On second-and-16, Jamison Pittman ran for 20 yards, and on the next play quarterback Railey Silvis threw to Cade Anastasia, who was double-covered. The junior wide receiver jumped and pulled down the pass with one hand to set up a first-and-goal from the 4-yard line. Southwestern’s defense stiffened, but on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line, Silvis crossed the goal line to make it 13-7 after Alex Linderman’s first of two successful PATs.

Again, the Trojans answered before halftime. In just over three minutes, Kennedy marched his team down the field with completions of 14 and 21 yards to Cameron Lemk being the key plays.

“It’s great to have Cam back,” Burkholder said of his junior who was an offensive lineman last season. “To have him step up and be able to play tight end … he’s learning as he goes. He’s really progressed over the last couple of weeks.”

“Off the first drive, we saw what they were doing with their coverage,” Kennedy added. “Once they opened up the field, we know he can get open and he can catch the ball.”

On third-and-9 from the 15-yard line, Kennedy scrambled through the middle of the Huskies’ defense. He was hit around the 5-yard line, but managed to drive his legs and stretch for the goal line for a touchdown with 17 seconds left in the second quarter.

“I’m just trying to punch that in. I’m going to give every run my all,” Kennedy said. “I’m not going to let any ankle tackle. I’m going to make sure they earn it to take me down.”

Ni’s long touchdown reception essentially put the game away, but Kennedy added a 32-yard touchdown run before Walsh scored on runs of 41 yards and 9 yards in the fourth quarter.

“It’s rare to have somebody that size who can catch and run,” Burkholder said. “It’s nice to have that ability in the backfield.”

Southwestern will look to carry its home-field advantage over into next week’s game against Chautauqua Lake/Westfield/Brocton, which did not play this weekend due to COVID-19 concerns.

“This team really handled the two losses pretty well,” Kennedy said. “We know that if we execute and do all the little things, we’re two plays away from being 3-0 right now.”

NOTES: Pannes caught five passes for 80 yards and Lemk caught three for 59 yards. … Mitch Pike was in on five tackles, including one for a loss, and intercepted a pass for the Trojans. Kennedy also had an interception, which he returned more than 60 yards before it was called back due to a penalty. … Olean had just 149 yards of offense, with Anastasia catching four passes for 74 yards.

Olean 0 7 7 0 — 14

Southwestern 7 13 14 14 — 48

Sou–Kennedy 4 run (Hoose kick)

Sou–Walsh 2 run (pass failed)

Ole–Silvis 1 run (Linderman kick)

Sou–Kennedy 15 run (Hoose kick)

Sou–Ni 49 pass from Kennedy (Hoose kick)

Sou–Kennedy 32 run (Hooes kick)

Ole–Pittman 21 pass from Silvis (Linderman kick)

Sou–Walsh 41 run (Hoose kick)

Sou–Walsh 9 run (Hoose kick)

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