By Joe St. Henry

Review Sports Contributor

It is tough to win when a football team only runs 25 plays in a game, but Lake Orion did just that in its 21-14 first round playoff victory over Rochester Hills Stoney Creek last Friday.

When they did have the ball, the Dragons big play offense shined. Lake Orion was led by senior running back Kobe Manzo, who scored three touchdowns on runs of 44, 34 and 76 yards in the first half.

Once it settled in, the Cougar offense kept the Dragons off the field, holding the ball for 26 of the game’s final 32 minutes. Lake Orion ran only three plays in the third quarter. The Dragons also did not help themselves with two lost fumbles.

As it has all season, however, the Dragon defense rose to the occasion. After mounting long, time-consuming drives downfield, the Cougars were stopped inside the Lake Orion 10-yard line twice in the first half and inside the 20-yard line in the third quarter.

“It was frustrating at times, not getting our defense off the field,” said Head Coach John Blackstock. “But I give Stoney credit – they made plays when they had to, especially on fourth down. But our kids came up with the big stops when it counted.

“It was a character win for our whole team. They never flinched.”

Stoney Creek did finish a marathon 24-play drive with a rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to seven points. With momentum on their side, the Cougars had an opportunity late in the game to mount a game-tying drive, but turned the ball over on downs.

Manzo’s four-yard run for a first down with less than 30 seconds left finally sealed the hard-fought playoff victory for Lake Orion.

“It was what we expected in terms of the quality of play from Stoney Creek,” Blackstock said. “They were a well-coached, physical team with a power running game designed to grind it out. But I never thought we’d only have the ball for nine minutes during the entire game.”

Lake Orion took only five plays to open the scoring on Manzo’s first touchdown less than three minutes into the first quarter. On their next possession, the Dragons scored in three plays – highlighted by a 39-yard scramble by senior quarterback Blaze Lauer and Manzo’s second scoring run.

“We’ve always stressed the importance of starting fast and we’ve done that all season,” Blackstock said. “If you look back in our program’s history, the number one predicator for winning has been our ability to score first. That’s how important it is.”

Stoney Creek converted a fake punt later in the first quarter and the Cougars eventually scored on a short run to cut Lake Orion’s lead.

In the second quarter, the Dragons seized the momentum back after a highlight interception from junior Kade Manzo, who seemingly tipped the ball to himself while sliding across the field on his back. One play later his older brother broke several tackles on his long touchdown run.

Stoney Creek’s offense then seemingly took over the game and kept Lake Orion’s defense on the field. The Dragons’ three defensive stops in the red zone were the difference between the season ending and Lake Orion moving on to the next round of the playoffs.

“Our defense was gassed,” Blackstock said. “A couple of kids cramped up on a cold night in November, which was a little surprising until you remember they played 75 defensive snaps.”

Senior defensive lineman Casey Coltrin led the team with 11 tackles and a sack. Senior linebacker Ashton Croll finished with eight tackles, two for a loss.

In addition to his interception, Kade Manzo had nine tackles.

Kobe Manzo continued his assault on Dragon rushing records, finishing with 193 yards and three more touchdowns on 14 carries. He now has 1,228 yards and 15 scores this year, averaging 122 yards a game. He also was on the field during the key defensive series.

“We put in some different packages, where athletes like Kobe play both ways,” Blackstock said. “We don’t really want to do that too much in the regular season, but in the playoffs you want your best players out there when a game’s on the line.”

Lake Orion plays its second home playoff game this week against Utica Eisenhower. The Eagles (8-2) shut out Rochester Adams in their first-round playoff game.

Blackstock said a key to the game will be Lake Orion’s ability to take care of the football on offense. Given Eisenhower’s speed on defense, the Dragon offensive line must play well, sticking to their blocking assignments, he added.

“This is a typical Eisenhower team,” Blackstock said. “They look the same every year. Tough, physical kids with good size who play fast on both sides of the ball.”