SOUTH DEERFIELD — The signature moment of Frontier Regional’s 56-34 win over Mahar Friday night may have come early in the third quarter.
Frontier was protecting a 22-8 halftime lead and was driving when running back Aaron Landry broke free into the Mahar secondary. As tacklers grabbed and twisted at him, Landry dragged four defenders across the goal line for a 25-yard touchdown run.
The backbreaking score put Frontier (3-1, 1-1 Intercounty North) up 28-8, and while there were plenty more points scored on this cool, crisp night, the three-score difference was too much to overcome for Mahar.
Landry and fellow ball carrier Stephen Worthley combined to run roughshod over the Mahar defense with a stout triple-option attack. Worthley led the way with five rushing touchdowns. Landry added three of his own.
“They’d better keep scoring (through the end of the game)!” Frontier coach Don Gordon. “Seriously, they’re the engine that makes things go. The right side’s experienced, the left side’s new kids, but they’ve stepped up and they get the job done.”
Mahar led 8-6 after the first quarter, but Frontier scored 14 unanswered points in the second, and Landry’s touchdown early in the third put Mahar on the ropes. Both offenses exploded in the second half, though Mahar was unable to close within two touchdowns.
Worthley and Landry have traded off big performances, while not missing a beat even when not the featured back. Last week, Landry rushed for 273 yards, this week it was Worthley scoring five touchdowns. Quarterback Bryce Dubosz is also a featured rusher at times.
“They’ve been doing the same offense for three years now,” Gordon said. “They know it, they have confidence in it, and it works. We just go with it. We take what they give us. They were a little weaker on that left side so we went at that left side with just little scheme things, going unbalanced, things like that.”