Prep Talk

I'm live at Ralph Wilson Stadium for one of the games Western New York has been waiting all season for: Orchard Park vs. North Tonawanda for the AA championship.

I'll have updates when I can provide them, hopefully at the very least at the end of quarters and after scoring plays. Just settle in and become friends with your refresh button. Thanks for your patience and participation.

8:20 p.m. The OP players are being introduced over the public address system by legendary former OP baseball coach Bob Barrows. The OP players are being introduced individually. I'm pretty sure NT will be called as a team, as it has chosen to do so in the games I've seen them in this season. Yup, 50-year NT announcer, Dick Grapes, just did the honors and the team rushed out as a group. We look to be right on time for our 8:30 p.m. kickoff.

8:28 p.m. We're about to start. NT will kickoff.

8:29 p.m. Aaron Davis booted it over the OP returners' heads and the ball bounded into the end zone.

8:31 p.m. NT has held on OP's first possession. The Quakers will punt from their 26. Kyle Hoppy had a receiver wide open on a nice pass play on second down, but Eric Wildey couldn't reel in the pass.

8:34 p.m. North Tonawanda has a TOUCHDOWN and a 7-0 lead with 9:32 left in the first quarter. After a drive start at the OP 42 thanks to a poor punt, NT reached the end zone in three plays: a 1-yard Jeff Zellner run, a 10-yard Davis run off of a pitch to the left, and a 31-yard scoring run by Brandon McClinsey off a pitch to the right.

8:41 p.m. Orchard Park faces a fourth-and-2 at the NT 31.

8:43 p.m. A nice throw by Kyle Hoppy -- he's had several nice plays on this drive -- hits senior Brandon Nuessle on the left side for a first down at the NT 28.

8:46 p.m. A holding penalty knocked OP back and it faces a fourth down and 23, and Hoppy's punt is just barely a touchback.

8:47 p.m. Big mistake here -- NT fumbles a pitch on its first play and it is recovered by senior Robert Kugler, setting up OP at the NT 19.

8:49 p.m. Two Jeff Tundo runs give OP a first-and-goal at the 7.

8:51 p.m. We have a tie game at 7-7. On third-and-goal from the 1, Tundo drove through a pile to break the plane for the TOUCHDOWN. The play marked the END OF THE FIRST QUARTER.

8:56 p.m. NT's possession started with a first down run by McClinsey, but ended soon after, and the end wasn't good. A low snap on a punt wasn't handled by Kevin Miller, who was tackled at the NT 36, where OP took over.

8:57 p.m. OP didn't take long to cash in. After a Hoppy pass to Nuessle, Hoppy scrambled left and raced down the right side for a TOUCHDOWN and, with the extra point, a 14-7 lead for OP with 9:28 left in the second quarter.

9:04 p.m. NT's drive sputtered at its 42 as OP snuffed out a couple of the Lumberjacks' triple-option plays. OP takes over at its 34 with 6:49 left in the second quarter.

9:10 p.m. OP is rolling pretty well now. Jeff Tundo just powered in for an 8-yard TOUCHDOWN run with 3:29 left before halftime. At first-and-goal at the 8, Tundo followed some great blocks to the left, then dragged a defender into the end zone. OP has a 21-7 lead.

9:13 p.m. A nice sweep by McClinsey gives NT a first down at the OP 45. OP was all over two plays by NT, one of which saw what the NT sideline felt should be a late hit. A good no-call, it says here. Quarterback Mike Tuzzo hit Davis for a 22-yard gain and a first down at the OP 22.

9:17 p.m. NT calls its second timeout in the last three plays as it faces a third-and-13 at the OP 25 with 1:21 to play in the second quarter.

9:19 p.m. One play after Kyle Perla made a great play to break up a Tuzzo pass attempt to Kevin Miller on third down, Tuzzo rolls away from pressure to the right and finds Miller for a TOUCHDOWN with 1:06 left to go in the second quarter. After Davis' extra point kick goes wide left, Orchard Park has a 21-13 lead.

9:23 p.m. OP's short drive start from its 25 with 59 seconds to goes nowhere and it's HALFTIME with Orchard Park leading, 21-13.

9:33 p.m. There is some scurrying going on among the crowd of about 4,500 ... that's because a steady rain has started to fall. We'll have to see if that keeps up and how it may affect the game. About five minutes until the third quarter.

9:42 p.m. The second half has kicked off. NT's drive start is at its 37. The rain seems to be a steady but fairly light drizzle.

9:48 p.m. NT converted a big third-and-9 on a nice catch by Dan Brandel, who held on despite a big hit by Cam Hicks for a first down at the OP 33.

9:50 p.m. NT faces a fourth-and-inches at the OP 24 with 8:20 left in the third after a tough, spinning run by Aaron Davis. That came two plays after McClinsey left the field holding his left arm. The senior is sitting on the bench. That's not good for NT.

9:51 p.m. It appeared NT may have moved at the line, but not so, and Jeff Zellner runs left for the first down. The Lumberjacks are at the OP 21.

9:55 p.m. NT's drive ends at the 14 when a field goal attempt by Davis goes wide left. The Jacks may have been rushed on th play - it appeared Davis and his holder had trouble getting the kicking tee from the sideline.

9:57 p.m. OP is on the move thanks to a 35-yard run by Tundo down the right side -- in which he broke several tackles and used blocks very nicely -- and a 23-yard pass play from Hoppy to Kenneth Selby to put the Quakers at the NT 32 inside five minutes to go in the third quarter.

10:01 p.m. OP's drive stalled due to a holding penalty, a nice Davis pass break-up and a nice blitz from the blind side by Matt Potalivo for NT to force an incompletion. Hoppy had a great, high punt again, but a host of Quakers weren't able to down it -- the punt had such great hang time that there were about six players trying to do the same thing, and they fell into the end zone before they could down it. So, NT stats at the 20 with about 3:30 left in the third.

10:06 p.m. It's the END OF THE THIRD QUARTER with OP still leading, 21-13. Tuzzo has completed two third-down passes on NT's current drive, one to senior Cory Stuff and one to Davis on the second-to-last play of the quarter. Davis actually appeared to grab the ball away from an apparent OP interceptor, but both came to the turf together and the officials immediately signaled an NT first down.

10:10 p.m. NT faces a fourth-and-3 at the OP 28. With McClinsey out, NT has gone up the middle with Zellner and Steve Kijowski.

10:11 p.m. Orchard Park holds when David Michael wrapped up Brandel on a pass play to the left side. OP takes over at its 29 with 8:37 to play in the game, still holding its 21-13 lead.

10:14 p.m. OP quickly faces a third-and-10 from its 29 approaching seven minutes to go, then is moved back on a delay-of-game penalty for third-and-15 from its 24.

10:15 p.m. Hoppy rolls right and his pass goes incomplete so OP will punt.

10:16 p.m. A Hoppy punt isn't as good as his previous kicks, but it gets an OP bounce -- so much so that Davis, who was holding back, picked it up and returned it briefly. When Davis was tackled, OP was flagged for a personal foul and NT will start at the OP 40 with 6:50 left to play.

10:17 p.m. NT calls timeout with 6:45 to go, facing a second-and-10 at the OP 40. Updates may be slow from here on it because I've got to do some serious writing.

10:19 p.m. A reverse by NT, run by Joe Montesanti, gives them a first down at the OP 29.

10:21 p.m. On third-and-8, a Zellner powerful run up the middle gives NT a first down at the OP 19.

10:23 p.m. NT faces a fourth-and-9 at the OP 18, and Tuzzo's second straight incompletion ends the drive with 3:49 left.

10:27 p.m. OP faces a third-and-1 at its 41 with the clock ticking under three minutes to go.

10:28 p.m. Hoppy keeps it and gets the first down easily. NT takes its final timeout with 2:39 left in the game. OP is at its 44.

10:31 p.m. This one is over. Tundo just ran for a 53-yard TOUCHDOWN, taking the ball into a pile, then bouncing to the right and sprinting down the sideline for the score. The extra point by Ryan Cole is good and OP has a 28-13 lead with 1:45 to play. I'll be back when its a final.

10:38 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Orchard Park 28, North Tonawanda 13. Deadline time.

---Keith McShea