Canton takes care of business in dominating win over Housy

Canton’s Cameron Daley tries to get out of the grasp of Housatonic’s Chance Oneil Saturday. Daley had two interceptions in Canton’s 47-6 win.

CANTON – It would be easy to rest on the laurels of a great victory. And Canton’s three-point win over Avon two weeks ago on the final play of the game was one that will not soon be forgotten in Canton. But it was just game one in an 11-game schedule.

An opportunity exists for the Warriors to accomplish much more. Perhaps, they can contend for a divisional championship, a spot in the eight-team Class S tournament or win more than the seven games they captured a year ago.

The journey resumed Saturday and the Warriors and their fans left with a smile after a dominating 47-6 victory over a small, undermanned Housatonic/Wamogo squad. Canton was simply too quick and executed too well for a Mountaineer squad that lost one of their best players with a broken ankle in week one.

Housatonic runs the single wing offense and tries to keep the opposition off the field. Canton left them with little room to operate, limiting the Mountaineers to just 41 yards rushing and forcing three turnovers.

Offensively, Canton QB Eric Scott completed 3-of-5 passes for 100 yards and two touchdown passes. Terrence Brophy ran for a career-high 124 yards and a touchdown on six carries. Dan Delos scored three TDs.

“We’re just trying to be the best we can be,” Canton coach Paul Philippon said. “As good as the individuals are and as good as the team is, sometimes you forget that you are really competing against yourself. We’re trying to get our players to be the best that they can be.”

Improvement is necessary, especially with Hyde of New Haven coming to Canton next Saturday for an anticipated Alumni Weekend clash at 3 p.m. Hyde (2-1) is an athletic team that has earned a spot in the Class S tournament in four of the past five seasons and won back-to-back Class S titles in 2004 and 2005.

Philippon and his staff didn’t give the Warriors much time to celebrate after the big 16-13 victory over Avon. “As a staff, we’ve been through this before,” he said. “We didn’t give them time to get complacent. We had some long hard practices.

But he added, “We’re blessed to have the kids we do. They want to work hard and they’re willing to work.”

Canton (2-0, 2-0 Pequot West) didn’t cut the Mountaineers any slack.

The Warriors took a 14-0 lead on a pair of long touchdown passes from Scott to Keith Wilson (53 yards) and Jake Wood (32 yards). Wilson was wide open on the right side and scored his first career touchdown. Wood had to reach up to snag Scott’s pass and pull it down.

A 42-yard punt return from Cam Daley set up a three-yard touchdown run by Delos with 25 seconds left in the first quarter and give Canton a 21-0 lead.

Housatonic (0-3, 0-1 Pequot West) gained just two first downs in the first half on a pair of pass plays to Chance O’Neil. Canton tackled Housatonic runners behind the line of scrimmage for a loss five times.

Daley intercepted two passes, leaping high in the air to get his first and outleaping Oneil and a Canton teammate to get the second interception.

Brophy gave Canton a 27-0 lead on a 69-yard touchdown run. The Mountaineers fumbled the ball away on its next offensive play with Brophy recovering the ball. Canton marched 35 yards on five plays with Delos scoring from the five-yard line for a 34-0 lead.

Canton marched 69 yards in three plays to extend the lead to 41-0. Scott gained 46 yards on a run and Delos ran for eight to the Mountaineer 15-yard line. Delos scored from the 15 with 11 seconds left.

To avoid violating the CIAC’s 50-point rule, the second half was played with running time, enough time for each team to each have a long scoring drive. Coaches of teams that win games by 51 points or more could be suspended one game for unsportsmanlike conduct.

“Obviously, we’re a young team,” Housatonic coach Deron Bayer said. “The kids are working hard. I have to do a better job to help them get more physical. Our goal is get better and continue to teach them the game.”

The Mountaineers, who lost senior back Jeremy Stiewing in week one, did have some moments.

Tyler Sebben outfought a Canton receiver for an interception and Oneil recovered a fumble. Oneil made a nice 13-yard catch to give the Mountaineers a first down in the first quarter and outleaped a Canton defender to make a 21-yard reception for a first down on the Canton 37-yard line late in the second quarter.

NOTES: The 47 points scored by Canton was the second most points scored in a single game in the program’s history. The record is 54 in a 54-23 win over Housatonic/Wamogo in 2009. … The 41-point margin of victory is the second largest margin of victory in school history. The largest margin of victory by a Canton team was 46 points over Litchfield Junior Republic in 1935. … Sophomore kicker Eddie Melton tied a school record with four extra points in the game. Jeff Nasson had four PAT against Housatonic/Wamogo in 2009. Melton was 4-for-5 in the game with one extra point attempt going wide. … The last time that Canton began the season 2-0 was in 1954. … The last time Canton began the season 3-0 was in 1952 when the Warriors went 6-0 that season. 

Canton 47, Housatonic/Wamogo 6
At Canton
Housatonic/Wamogo (0-3)        0    0  0  6 – 6
Canton (2-0)                           21  20  0  6 – 47
First quarter
C: Keith Wilson 53 pass from Eric Scott (Eddie Melton kick), 10:10
C: Jake Wood 32 pass from Scott (Melton kick), 2:30
C: Dan Delos 3 run (Melton kick), 0:20
Second quarter
C: Terrence Brophy 69 run (kick wide), 7:05
C: Delos 5 run (Melton kick), 4:18
C: Delos 15 run (Melton kick), 0:11
Fourth quarter
H: Stephen Kopcho 2 run (kick blocked), 11:47
C: Jackson Cole 4 run (run fails), 2:08
Individual statistics
RUSHING: Canton – Dan Delos 5-34, Eric Scott 5-53, Cam Daley 1-5, Terrence Brophy 6-124; Jackson Cole 4-48, Alex Higley 1-8, Manny Harden 2-18, Brock Steinfeldt 2-6; Housatonic/Wamogo – Stephen Kopcho 11-25, Tyler Sebben 5-1, Nick Camardi 7-21, Kenny Weaver 7-minus 6, Chance Oneil 1-0
PASSING: Canton – Eric Scott 3-5-1, 100 yards; Housatonic/Wamogo – Stephen Kopcho 1-5-1, 27; Nick Camardi 0-1-0, Kenny Weaver 2-3-1, 34
RECEIVING: Canton – Keith Wilson 1-53, Jake Wood 1-32, Cam Daley 1-15; Housatonic/Wamogo – Chance Oneil 3-61
RETURNS: Kickoffs – Chance Oneil (H) 5-49, Billy Hurley (H) 1-5, Keith Wilson (C) 1-13; Punts – Oneil (H) 1-4, Cam Daley (C) 1-42
INTERCEPTIONS: Daley (C) 2-19, Oneil (H) 1-5; FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Terrence Brophy (C) 1, Tyler Sebben (H) 1; SACKS: none