Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake showed up ready to ball on Friday night, putting up touchdowns on their first three possessions and building a 21-0 lead against undefeated Troy. The Spartans kept that momentum, sealing a 28-14 win over the Flying Horses, but Troy made them fight for every single yard.
Owen Huggins Was Unstoppable for Burnt Hills
Junior Owen Huggins absolutely lit it up for Burnt Hills, rushing for 117 yards on 21 carries. Get this: he scored all four Burnt Hills touchdowns! That’s a career best for him, and frankly, it’s insane production. Coach Kevin DeBonis was quick to give credit where it’s due, saying, “Our O-line has come a long, long way, they are confident in each other and work together.” He added that Huggins “ran his tail off and it was just everybody together. They came together and battled, they, Troy, are a great team.”
The Spartans came out firing, dominating the line of scrimmage early. Junior quarterback Tristan West kept Troy’s defense off-balance in the first half, completing six of seven passes. The ground game was working, too, with Burnt Hills racking up 184 rushing yards on 37 attempts. Huggins kicked off their opening 80-yard drive with a six-yard touchdown run. Troy tried to claw their way back, with Anthony Brown hitting Kieonte Green for an 18-yard touchdown pass on fourth down, making it 21-6 late in the first half. Kyair Carr later rushed for a six-yard touchdown in the third quarter, cutting the lead to just 21-14. Game on, right?
A Flag on the Field Erased a Game-Changing Play
Troy was down 21-14 with only 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter. Their defense had just forced a punt, giving them the ball at their own 7-yard line. This was it, their chance to tie the game. On the very first play of that drive, Carr took a direct snap, cut left, and broke free for a would-be 93-yard touchdown! The celebration was on in the end zone, but then everyone saw it: a penalty flag, five yards past the line of scrimmage. Holding call on Troy. Absolutely crushing.
That holding call was the biggest of Troy’s nine penalties in the game. Troy coach Jordan Canzeri nailed it when he said, “Certain things you can’t control but you’ve just got to get the next play down. Those penalties are tough.” That drive stalled fast after the flag. Burnt Hills got the ball back, and what happened next? Huggins scored his fourth touchdown on the ensuing drive, sealing the 28-14 win. Talk about a dagger in the heart of Troy’s rally.
Huggins himself was hyped, saying, “It feels amazing, I’ve barely gotten the ball, but today was my day. I’m proud of all the linemen, proud of their blocks. It could not have been set up any better. We came out firing, we were hot coming in here. We wanted to punish them with the run.” He definitely did that, earning every one of his 117 yards.
Burnt Hills, now 4-0 overall and 3-0 in Class A, is heading home to host Ballston Spa in a big Class A contest. Troy, at 3-1 overall and 3-1 in Class A, has to regroup quickly. They are off to East Greenbush this coming Friday for a big matchup against Columbia. They will need to clean up those penalties if they want to get back on track.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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