No relief from Leafs: Geneseo dominates Dukes on rain-soaked night
DIXON – The Geneseo Maple Leafs were the aggressors Friday night for Dixon’s homecoming game, and the result was a 26-0 Geneseo victory in conditions better suited for mud-wrestling than football.
“Geneseo just came out and took the fight to us,” Dixon coach Tony Agrimonti said. “We didn’t fire out on offense, we didn’t fire out on defense, and give them credit because they took advantage.”
Another big play put Dixon (2-4, 1-3 NCIC Reagan) in an early hole for the third straight week. Luke Lembke, the first Leaf to touch the ball, returned a Dixon punt 58 yards for a touchdown less than 3 minutes into the game.
On the Dukes’ next series, Geneseo’s Tyler Claeys came out of the muck at the bottom of a pile with a fumble recovery, and Lembke capped a 49-yard drive with a 6-yard TD run for a 14-0 lead with 3:29 left in the first quarter.
“That punt return was huge, it gave us all the momentum,” said Jason Johnson, who led the Leafs with 159 yards and 2 TDs on 18 rushes.
The constant rain and cold seemed to affect Dixon more than Geneseo. The Dukes fumbled seven times and lost three, while the Leafs lost one of their three fumbles.
A missed field goal on Geneseo’s second drive of the game gave Dixon the ball at its own 20, and Sam Smith recovered a fumble on the Leafs’ punt return attempt following a 3-and-out. But a fourth-and-5 from the Geneseo 37 came up short and the Leafs turned things around immediately. Two long runs got Geneseo to the Dixon 17-yard line, and Johnson powered in from 2 yards out with 16.7 seconds left before halftime to give the Leafs a 20-0 lead.
“It wasn’t all Geneseo beating us,” said Smith, who led Dixon with 12 tackles, including two for loss. “We made mental mistakes, we fumbled the ball, we didn’t catch passes, we didn’t hold our blocks – we really beat ourselves in the first half.”
The Leafs amassed 345 yards, all on the ground, and had 19 first downs. The Dukes gained only four first downs and finished with 103 yards rushing.
Star of the game: Jason Johnson, Geneseo, 18 rushes, 159 yards, 2 TDs
Key performers: Luke Lembke, Geneseo, 65 rushing yards, TD, 58-yard punt return TD; Sam Smith, Dixon, 12 tackles, 2 for loss, fumble recovery; Luke Heniff, Dixon, 60 rushing yards.
Why the Maple Leafs won: Geneseo took a 2-TD lead in the first 9 minutes, then controlled the game
