THORNDIKE — It isn’t easy to win two straight football games, especially when a team is young and inexperienced.

For Smith Vocational, it was all a matter of dominating the line of scrimmage and using ball control to spearhead a 30-6 victory over Pathfinder, Friday night at St. Joe’s Field.

For the first time in program history, the Vikings (2-2) have won two straight games. Smith Voke was coming off a win over Mohawk.

“Hard work,” Smith Vocational coach Vinnie Guiel said. “These guys didn’t get down on themselves after losing the first two games.”

The two-game winning streak may not sound like much, but for the first time at this point of the season, the Vikings are contenders for the league title.

“We won’t get ahead of ourselves because we know we have a lot of work to do,” Guiel said. “We made some mistakes, but the players came back to make big plays.”

None was bigger than the 45-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Nick Marcinowski to Chevrin Wall as the Vikings closed out a tight, 14-6 game with a 16-point fourth quarter.

“I was ready to call a time-out, but coach Keith Lebeau called the play. He deserves the credit,” Guiel said.

Marcinowski earlier had a long touchdown pass to Wall that was negated by a penalty.

“That was deflating,” Marcinowski said. “But we tried a similar play later on and it worked.”

Ball control was the key to the victory.

“We wanted to pound the ball,” Marcinowski said.

That’s exactly what the Vikings did on their opening drive following a three-and-out by the Pioneers. Smith Voke marched 63 yards in nine plays.

The drive was capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by workhorse fullback Eric Leet. He ran in the conversion for an 8-0 lead.

Equally impressive was the six minutes it took to complete the drive.

“We wanted to keep the ball on the ground,” Marcinowski said.

When Pathfinder did get the ball, Smith Voke’s defense didn’t make things easier for the home team. The Vikings effectively clogged up the middle and prevented Pathfinder (0-4) from big gains.

The secondary did an excellent job of shutting down the passing game. Ethan Rivera made the big defensive play with a 40-yard interception return for a touchdown.

That pick six during the final quarter was followed by freshman Jamieson Bang’s conversion run that stretched Smith’s lead to 30-6.

Bang had a breakout game. He also had a 36-yard gain and made several outstanding defensive plays at linebacker.

Pathfinder cut Smith Vocational lead to 8-6 on a 3-yard run by Jordan Talbot early in the second quarter. But Leet finished another long drive with a 2-yard touchdown run later in the quarter for a 14-6 lead.

That’s the way it remained until the final quarter when Marcinowski hit Wall with the 45-yard scoring strike. Rivera’s interception return for a touchdown capped the scoring.

“These guys are starting to believe in themselves,” Guiel said. “Nick is getting better and better each week.”

Smith Vocational 30, Pathfinder 6

Smith Voke

8

6

0

16

—30

Pathfinder

0

6

0

0

—6

First quarter

SV-Eric Leet 3 run (Leet run) 3:25

Second quarter

P-Jordan Talbot 3 run (pass failed) 8:15

SV-Leet 2 run (pass failed) 10:30

Fourth quarter

SV-Chevran Wall 45 pass from Nick Marcinowski (Leet run) 3:46

SV-Ethan Rivera 40 INT return (Jameson Bang run) 3:23

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Smith Voke: Leet 15-45, Rivera 9-52, Bang 4-45, Marcinowski 4-5. Pathfinder: Griswold 11-26, Farrar 2-16, Talbot 5-(-8), Martell 1-(-4).

PASSING—Smith Voke: Marcinowski 4-6-87. Pathfinder: Talbot 5-16-73

RECEIVING—Smith Voke: Wall 62, Leet 1-5, Rivera 1-20. Pathfinder: Ellithorpe 1-(-4), Farrar 3-71, Griswold 1-6.