SILVER CREEK - After a turnover filled, back-and-forth first half, the No. 3 Silver Creek Black Knights (5-3) used a heavy dose of the Williams brothers - Zed and Sherman - on the ground to earn 33-8 win over the No. 6 Frewsburg Bears (3-5) in their Section 6 Class D quarterfinal on Friday.
"It really just came down to us executing our plays in the second half," Silver Creek coach Sean Helmer said. "We were able to move the ball and Sherman and Zeddie Williams were able to carry a little more of the load."
In the early goings of the second quarter, Frewsburg was forced to punt, but Silver Creek muffed the kick with the Bears recovering in Black Knight territory.
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OBSERVER?Photo by?Roger Coda
Silver Creek’s Zed Williams (44) looks to break free from Frewsburg’s Austin Lynn (54) on the game’s opening kickoff Friday night. The No. 3 Black Knights hosted the No. 6 Bears in a Section 6 Class D quarterfinal, coming out on top, 33-8, and advancing to the semifinals next week against No. 2 Randolph.
However, on Frewsburg's next offensive play, a botched lateral was scooped up by Anthony Morales for the Black Knights, giving them the ball right back.
"We did a good job of forcing them to turn the ball over," Frewsburg coach Terry Gray said. "The problem is we either couldn't punch the ball in or we would turn it right back over."
After Silver Creek took over at its own 29-yard line, a big run from Zeddie Williams set himself up for a short touchdown run just a few plays later, as he made his way into the end zone from three yards out to give the home team a 6-0 advantage.
Despite a number of turnovers by both teams, the score remained 6-0 at halftime.
"Frewsburg did a good job on defense," Helmer said. "With four turnovers at halftime, we were just happy to be winning at that point."
The Black Knights came out ready to run in the second half as they needed just four rushes to reach paydirt.
Zeddie Williams capped off the scoring drive with an 11-yard touchdown with less than a minute and half gone off the clock in the third quarter.
A failed two-point conversion left the score 12-0 with plenty of time left in the game.
Silver Creek's defense forced the Bears to go three-and-out on the ensuing series which gave the Black Knights another opportunity to display their talented running backs.
Zeddie Williams once again broke off another long run, before making an impressive play to finish off the drive.
Williams hurdled a pile of players and then regained his footing enough to dive forward to reach the end zone for the six-yard touchdown.
"At halftime, we told the guys the game was going to be won in the trenches at the line of scrimmage," Helmer said. "The line did a great job of opening up some big holes in the second half and our backs did a good job of making some nice cuts."
Zeddie Williams finished with 120 yards on 19 carries and three touchdowns while Sherman Williams was able to record 135 yards on as many carries and one trip to the end zone.
Quarterback, Nick Iskra, connected with Tyler Bain for the two-point conversion to make the score 20-0 with 6:36 left in the third quarter.
The Black Knight defense forced the Bears to turn the ball over on downs as Frewsburg was held without a first down in the third quarter.
"The last four weeks our defense has been dominant," Helmer said. "There isn't one guy that stands out on our defense, but as a unit, we are playing great."
Once Silver Creek took over near midfield, it was Sherman Williams' turn to carry the ball as he ran four straight plays, which were capped off by 12-yard score to put the No. 3 seed up 26-0 with 3:10 left to play in the third quarter.
"The biggest difference in the second half was Silver Creek's ability to execute their game plan better than us," Gray said. "That is the story of the last half of our season. It isn't a lack of talent or a lack of athletic ability. It's been a lack of execution."
A few plays into the fourth quarter, the Black Knights were into the end zone once again when Iskra connected with Zach Klisiewicz from 10 yards out to put the home team up 33-0 with the added extra point.
Iskra finished the night with 127 yards passing as he went 9-for-13 through the air with one interception and one touchdown.
Midway through the fourth quarter, the Bears broke the shutout when quarterback Nick Munella scrambled in from 11 yards out. The added two-point conversion capped off the scoring for the game.
Munella led the Bears in rushing with 33 yards on seven carries.
"I just want to thank all of the seniors for their effort and contribution to this program," Gray said. "I also want to congratulate Coach Helmer and his coaching staff. They have done a tremendous job getting their team playing the way they are heading into the playoffs. They are better than when we played them two weeks ago and I think they have a real shot against Randolph."
With No. 2 Randolph's 44-14 victory over No. 7 Cattaraugus Little-Valley, the Black Knights have earned the right to try and avenge a 13-12 Week 2 loss to the Cardinals.
"I'm happy for the seniors," Helmer said. "They won the last game they'll play on their home field and that is something they will always remember. We'll be in Randolph next week which should be a challenge, but we'll be ready."
The Class D semifinals will be held in Randolph, next Friday at 7 p.m.
