The buses hadn’t even parked yet, but the game was basically over.
Lake Orion scored four touchdowns before Southfield Lathrup recorded a first down, on their way to a 41-0 rout for their second straight road win Friday night.
Kim Bruce scored three times, including one-yard scores on the Dragons first two possessions, the second set up by a 46-yard run.
That got Coach Chris Bell fired up on the sideline and he made sure the team did not let down.
‘We were just playing well and we wanted the kids to be excited as well,? he said. ‘We didn’t want them to say, ‘okay, we’re up 14, let’s relax.? They to learn that when you get a team down, you’ve got to put the hammer down.?
After Evan Gros recovered a fumble deep in Lathrup territory, Mikael Lott caught a 22-yard touchdown pass from Sean Charette on the final play of the first quarter, to put Lake Orion up 21-0.
On the first play from scrimmage in the second quarter, Robby Lentz intercepted a Chris Armsted pass and returned it 25 yards for a 28-0 lead. It was one of two interceptions for Lentz, who also forced a fumble for the Dragons.
‘He’s playing the way a three-year starter should play,? Bell said of Lentz, one of his team captains. ‘He worked hard in the off-season and he’s a great football player who loves to play.?
In addition to Lentz’s numbers, five different Dragons recorded at least five tackles on the night, and the team forced four turnovers.
‘The defense gave us great field position right out of the gate, and we were moving the ball and making plays,? Bell said.
Bruce scored again in the third quarter, when he recovered his own fumble in the end zone after a five-yard run. Christian Carrasco capped the scoring with a three-yard run in the fourth quarter, once a running clock had come into effect.
Bruce finished the game with 77 yards rushing and Marques Stevenson added 76. The team again played without senior Branden Oakes, who is expected to be back next week.
‘When Brandon comes back, we’ve got three of them,? Bell said of his running backs. ‘And in this offense, you need to keep guys fresh, so it’s only going to make us better.?
The only real question that remained in the closing minutes was if the Dragons defense could preserve the shutout. They did by breaking up a pass at the goal line on the final play of the game.