OAA Red title on the line against Clarkston on Friday

By Jim Newell
Managing Editor
ROCHESTER HILLS — Lake Orion football head coach Chris Bell said there are no easy games in the Oakland Activities Association Red Division.
The Rochester Adams Highlanders must not have gotten the memo.
The Highlanders barely put up a fight when they hosted the Dragons on Friday, losing 35-0
Or maybe the Dragons smelled blood and wanted revenge.
When Rochester Adams traveled to Dragon Stadium last year the Highlanders gave the Dragons more than they could handle on their way to a 42-21 route.
Heading into the game Friday, Lake Orion (6-0, 4-0 OAA Red) had the edge in the series with 21 wins to Adams’ 15 wins. Lake Orion was coming off a big 49-28 win over Stoney Creek the previous week, while Adams (3-3, 1-3 OAA Red) lost its previous game to West Bloomfield.
Lake Orion jumped out to an early lead against Adams, scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter to go up 14-0. The Dragons added another touchdown in the second quarter making it 21-0 at halftime.
If Adams even contemplated a comeback in the second half the Dragons quickly stomped all over those dreams, scoring 14 more unanswered points in the third quarter to go up 35-0.
While Lake Orion did not put up any points in the fourth quarter, the Dragon defense, as it had done all night, kept the Highlanders off the scoreboard throughout the game.
Lake Orion beat Adams in nearly all aspects of the game, amassing 312 total yards to Adams’ 148 yards.
The Dragons had 238 rushing yards on 45 attempts to the Highlanders 94 yards on 33 carries.
Lake Orion completed 7 of 11 passing attempts for another 74 yards while Adams went 5-for-16 for 54 passing yards. The Dragons also had 13 first downs to eight for Adams.
The Highlanders did exceed the Dragons in one category, racking up 64 penalty yards to only 35 for Lake Orion. Adams also had three turnovers while Lake Orion had zero turnovers.
Lake Orion’s backs accounted for nearly all of the Dragons’ scoring. Senior running back Billy Roberson had 18 carries for 124 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Tristan Hill rushed nine times for 65 yards and a TD. Slotback Raymond Payne rushed six times for 51 yards and two touchdowns.
Hill also led the Dragons in passing, going 6-for-12 for 48 yards. Top receivers were Dominic Novak with five catches for 47 yards and Jahman Cooper with two receptions for 27 yards.
Senior linebacker Kaydon Degraffenreid completed the scoring for the Dragons with a defensive touchdown.
As they had done all night, the Dragon defense made crucial tackles to stifle the Highlander offense.
Linebacker Carson Negri had 12 tackles and a sack, senior linebacker Joey DeBrincat had 14 tackles and two sacks and senior defensive lineman Ryan McCartan had eight tackles.
Lake Orion now travels to Clarkston on Friday in a battle for the OAA Red title. Clarkston (4-2, 4-0 OAA Red) defeated West Bloomfield 44-36 last Friday.
The Dragons defeated West Bloomfield 17-13 on Sept. 15.