Peru's Marco Amato (4) with the catch-and-run for the Nighthawks ' long-distance score. PLATTSBURGH — Week 3 of the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference season brought one of the year's most anticipated matchups as the undefeated Peru Nighthawks traveled to Plattsburgh High School to take on the unbeaten Plattsburgh Hornets, with sole possession of first place in the conference on the line. Peru struck first and never looked back. The Nighthawks opened the scoring at the 10:55 mark of the first quarter when Brody Blaise Smith broke through the Hornets' defense and raced 54 yards for a touchdown, giving Peru an early 6-0 advantage. The score remained unchanged for the rest of the opening quarter as both defenses settled in. Plattsburgh answered immediately to start the second quarter. Just 33 seconds into the period, Cooper Holland connected on a 31-yard touchdown pass to cap a quick drive and give the Hornets their first lead of the night at 7-6. The lead was short-lived. Peru responded with an explosive play of its own as Marco Amato hauled in a 58-yard touchdown pass to put the Nighthawks back in front, 12-7. The visitors continued to build momentum late in the half when Smith punched in a 1-yard touchdown run with 4:31 remaining before halftime. Peru converted the extra point and carried a commanding 19-7 lead into the locker room. The Nighthawks dominated the second half. With 4:39 remaining in the third quarter, Smith delivered the game's knockout blow, bursting through the line and sprinting 52 yards for his third touchdown of the evening to extend the advantage to 26-7. Peru wasn't finished. With just 1:22 left in the third quarter, Deacon Giroux found space behind the Plattsburgh secondary and hauled in a 26-yard touchdown pass to push the lead to 33-7 heading into the final quarter. Only four seconds into the fourth quarter, Deon Lawyer added to the Peru lead with a 2-yard touchdown run, making it 39-7 and seemingly putting the game out of reach. To their credit, the Hornets kept fighting. Garrison Rodriguez found the end zone on a 15-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 39-15. Later, with less than four minutes remaining, Ryan Colburn electrified the home crowd with a 50-yard touchdown run, trimming the lead to 39-23 and making it a two-possession game. However, any hopes of a late comeback were erased in the closing minutes. With 1:27 remaining, Isaiah Hendrix connected on a 27-yard touchdown pass to seal the victory and cap off a dominant offensive performance for Peru. The touchdown provided the final margin as the Nighthawks rolled to a 45-23 victory over their longtime rivals. Smith led the way for Peru with three rushing touchdowns, while Amato, Giroux, Lawyer, and Hendrix all contributed scores in a balanced offensive attack. Plattsburgh scored touchdowns from Holland, Rodriguez, and Colburn but couldn't overcome Peru's explosive plays throughout the night. With the win, the Nighthawks improve to 3-0 and will return home next week to host Saranac Lake. The Hornets fall to 2-1 and will look to bounce back when they travel to Beekmantown to face the Eagles.

Plattsburgh's Cooper Holland (3) breaks the tackle of Peru's Isaac Roger (15) for the Hornets first down.

Saranac's Storm D'Ambrosio (4) flies in for the shoulder tackle on Peru's Finley Coon (11) for the open-field tackle and stops the first down. PERU, N.Y. — A battle of undefeated teams quickly turned into a showcase for the home team Friday night as the Peru Nighthawks rolled past the Saranac Spartans 55-0 in Champlain Valley Athletic Conference action. Peru set the tone early and never looked back, scoring in every phase of the game while improving to 2-0 on the season. The Nighthawks opened the scoring in the first quarter when Caleb Starke broke free for an 8-yard touchdown run, giving Peru a 7-0 advantage. That score stood as the lone touchdown of the opening quarter. Peru struck again early in the second quarter. Just 2:45 into the period, the Nighthawks extended their lead to 14-0 when Marco Amato hauled in a 10-yard touchdown pass. The game's turning point came late in the first half. With just over two minutes remaining before intermission, Usaiah Hendrix intercepted a Spartans pass and raced 78 yards for a touchdown. The pick-six pushed Peru's lead to 21-0 heading into halftime and firmly put the Nighthawks in control. The second half began with fireworks as Deacon Giroux returned the opening kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown, extending the lead to 28-0. Just over two minutes later, Isaiah Hendrix found the end zone for the second time on the night, powering in from 10 yards out to make it 35-0. Peru continued its third-quarter surge when Deon Lawyer scored on a 2-yard touchdown run with 6:20 remaining in the period, pushing the advantage to 42-0. The Nighthawks never eased up in the fourth quarter. Darius Jenkins added a 21-yard touchdown run before Justin Schmidt capped the scoring with a 3-yard touchdown run as Peru cruised to the 55-0 victory. Isaiah Hendrix led the way for the Nighthawks with two touchdowns, while Peru's defense pitched a shutout and added a touchdown of its own. The special teams unit also contributed a score, highlighting a complete team performance. With the win, Peru improves to 2-0 and will look to keep its perfect record intact next week against the Plattsburgh Hornets. Saranac falls to 1-1 and will try to rebound when it faces the Beekmantown Eagles next weekend.

Peru's Deon Lawyer (44) and Deacon Giroux (1) go high and low to bring down Saranac's Skyler Walker (11) along the sidelines.

Plattsburgh's Ryan Colburn (13) takes it around the corner on the 92-yard punt return for the touchdown. Plattsburgh, NY-It was the opening weekend of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association football season, and the Plattsburgh Hornets made a statement in their season opener, rolling to a convincing 45-0 victory over the Malone Huskies in non-sectional action. The Hornets wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. At the 10:35 mark of the first quarter, Ryan Colburn electrified the crowd by returning a punt 92 yards for a touchdown, giving Plattsburgh an early 6-0 lead. Plattsburgh continued to control the game as Colden Johnson scored on a 2-yard touchdown run later in the opening quarter. The successful conversion pushed the lead to 14-0. Johnson struck again in the second quarter, finding the end zone from short yardage at the 6:53 mark to extend the Hornets' advantage to 22-0. That score would stand as the final points of the first half as Plattsburgh took a commanding lead into the break. The Hornets picked up right where they left off in the third quarter. Cooper Holland connected on a 13-yard touchdown pass with 3:08 remaining in the quarter to increase the lead to 29-0. On Malone's next possession, Plattsburgh's defense got in on the scoring by tackling the Huskies quarterback in the end zone for a safety, making it 31-0. Later in the third quarter, Johnson recorded his third rushing touchdown of the day, breaking free for a 14-yard score at the 6:05 mark to push the lead to 38-0. Plattsburgh capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter when Garrison Rodriguez powered in from 8 yards out with 4:13 remaining, sealing the 45-0 victory. Johnson led the Hornets offensively with 63 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Plattsburgh improves to 1-0 and will now prepare for sectional play against the Moriah Vikings. For Malone, Mason Perrea was a bright spot, carrying the ball five times for 35 yards. The Huskies fall to 0-1 and will look to rebound when they open sectional play against the Ogdensburg Blue Devils.

Malone's Jake Riley (20) takes it around the edge with the stiff arm on the defender for the nice gain.

Plattsburgh's (0) with the catch and fighting for the extra yards along the sidelines as they get the first down. It would be the last game of the regular season in the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference as the Plattsburgh Hornets would host the Ticonderoga Sentinels in their return to 11-man football. It would only take the home Hornets 1:44 to get the opening score of the game, when George Dejesus broke it for 16 yards, giving them the 6-0 lead. Then at the 8:36 mark of the first quarter, the Hornets would extend their lead to 14-0 on Ryan Colburn's one-handed grab for the score, and that's how the first quarter would end. In the second quarter, the Hornets would stay on the pedal, and at the 2:46 mark of the quarter, they would extend their lead to 21-0 on the 38-yard strike to Will Boire. Then at the 7:49 Hotnets Ryan Colburne would get his second score of the half this time with a 225-yard run and make it 28-0 game, and that's where the first half would end. When the teams returned for the second half, the Sentinels came out and had the defense at the top of its game, holding the Hornets scoreless, and the game was still 28-0 after the third quarter. Although in the fourth quarter the Hornets' offense would explode for three touchdowns —two from Jahvari Anderson and one from Tyler Durney —as the Hornets secured the 49-0 victory. In the winning effort, the Hornets go into the playoffs on a two-game winning streak at 2-6 and will play the Saranac Spartans in the Section VII Class C Semifinals. The Ticonderoga Sentinels finish the regular season at 0-7 and will play the Moriah Vikings in the Section VII Class D Finals. Gallery

Ticonderoga's Trevor Blanchard (32) with the stiff arm on the Plattsburgh defender as he takes it around the corner for the first down. Gallery

Beekmantown's Garrett Pelkey (81) with the comeback catch along the sidelines for the first down as they fight for the score. It would be the last week of the regular season in the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference, and we would have the Beekmantown Eagles hosting the Saranac Lake Red Storm as they look to position themself for the upcoming playoffs. The home Eagles would strike first in the 1st quarter on a 38-yard pass and catch to Blake Rock for the 6-0 lead with 31 seconds left in the 1st quarter. Then, at the 4:23 mark of the season quarter, the Eagles would extend their lead to 12-0. The Red Storm would get on the board at the 10:23 mark of the 2nd quarter with a 5-yard run by David Montroy, making it 12-7. The Eagles would regain their two-score lead on the ensuing kickoff when Shamus Bilbeau would return it 74 yards for the score and take the 18-7 lead, and that's where the scoring would end for the 1st half. The Eagles would stay hot as they returned for the third quarter when Garrett Pelkey would score on 16 16-yard score and take the big 24-7 lead early in the third quarter. The Red Storm would bite back in the deficit on a 66-yard run by David Montroy to make it 24-14. The Red Storm would answer back in a big way on a 74-yard pass and catch to Scott Holcomb as they made it a three-point game at 24-21 at the 10:07 mark of the quarter. The game would stay there till the 4:16 mark of the 4th quarter when David Montroy would score his third touchdown of the night to give the Red Storm the 28-24 lead. From there, the Red Storm defense would be up to the call and hold on for the win at 28-24. In the winning effort, the Red Stom go to 5-3 on the season, as the Eagles fall to 4-, four both waiting for their opponents next weekend as the sectional playoffs begin. Gallery

Saranac Lake's Scott Holcomb (10) with the catch along the sidelines as he battles the defender for the first down. Gallery