Local Sports

Randolph coasts past Wilson 28-0

RANDOLPH -- As a junior, Alex Garland wasn't Randolph's featured running back.

"Maybe he should have been," admitted head coach Nate Armella.

One year later, Garland leaves no doubt who the Cardinals' main man is.

Behind a dominant offensive line, Garland rushed for 190 yards on 23 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns on runs of 75 and 14 yards to lead top-seeded Randolph to a 28-0 victory over No. 4 Wilson in a Section VI Class D semifinal at Raymond Van Wie Stadium on Thursday night.

The win advances the Cardinals (8-1) into the championship game at 5 p.m. next Thursday at the University at Buffalo's Broadview Stadium against either No. 2 Newfane or No. 3 Silver Creek/Forestville. Those two teams square off tonight.

"It will be cool," Armella said about playing at the Amherst campus. "We've been up there for seven-on-seven tournaments, so we kind of talked about it in the summertime that, 'Hey, this is where the big show's at,' and they made it a goal to get there, and here we go."

Senior quarterback Davion Johnson accounted for the other two Randolph touchdowns on runs of 3 and 11 yards; senior Isaac Pihlblad was successful on all four extra-point attempts; and senior linebacker Carter Conley and junior end Easton Pence spearheaded a defense that limited the Lakemen (6-4) to 61 yards and three first downs.

"Carson Conley's done a tremendous job," Armella said. "This is his first year as a defensive coordinator. It's kind of cool for me, because I coached him four years ago, and now he's coaching alongside me. I'm super proud of him."

Speaking of being proud, Armella praised the performance of his offensive line that includes Pence, Hayden Bruyere, Jack Haines, Noah Brown and Christian Hayes.

"The line is not your typical Randolph line," Armella said. "We average 175 pounds. (Assistant coach) Jeff Padgett has done a tremendous job with those guys. They understand their assignments, they're fast and they're physical. It makes a difference."

Garland certainly understands that.

"I love my boys so much," said the 5-foot-11, 185-pounder. "They make holes and I just go. I have the easy job."

Armella said Garland didn't pout last fall when he didn't receive the bulk of the carries. Instead, he worked extra hard in the offseason, put on 20 pounds and has amassed, unofficially, more than 1,300 yards on the ground and 20 touchdowns.

"He's done it all year," Armella said. "In my opinion -- and I might be biased -- but he's one of the best, if not THE best, back in Western New York."

The Cardinals, who defeated Wilson 42-6 in the regular season, led 14-0 at halftime, an advantage that could have been even greater, but they couldn't score a touchdown with the ball at the Lakemen 1-yard line in the closing moments and a field goal attempt from 18 yards out with one second remaining never happened due to a bad snap.

As it turned out it was of little consequence, because Wilson never reached the Randolph red zone.

NOTES: Chris Smith and Syrai Johnson both had interceptions for the Cardinals. ... Ethan Dietz blocked a punt for the Lakemen. ... Randolph finished with 15 first downs, 282 total yards and a 29:56 to 18:04 advantage in time of possession. ... Mason Coulter led Wilson in rushing with 37 yards on 13 carries.

Wilson 0 0 0 0 -- 0

Randolph 7 7 0 14 -- 28

Ran--DJohnson 3 run (Pihlblad kick)

Ran--Garland 75 run (Pihlblad kick)

Ran--Garland 14 run (Pihlblad kick)

Ran--DJohnson 11 run (Pihlblad kick)