Brother Martin rides record night from Lambert past Northwood to state semifinals

With your season on the line, put it in the hands of your best player. You can also say to put it on the legs of that player.

In the case of Brother Martin, that player is senior running back Torey Lambert.

For the second straight week, Lambert answered the call, this time in the biggest fashion imaginable as the 13th-seeded Crusaders downed fifth seed Northwood 28-14 Friday night at Tad Gormley in the Select Division I quarterfinals in a game heard live on NASH ICON 106.1 FM.

Lambert set a school record for carries, rushing 47 times, officially for 277 yards and two touchdowns in an awesome performance.

It came a week after Lambert rushed 38 times for 104 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-24 regional round victory over St. Augustine.

“I thought I had about 25 to 30 carries,” Lambert said. “I did not realize it was that many carries. I was ready and willing to do whatever it took for us to win. We needed to run the ball well to win this game. Our offensive line did the job throughout and I simply did what our team needed me to do.”

Lambert, who was going to carry the load, was pressed into even more action when Jordan West was injured in the second quarter and did not return to the game.

The Crusaders never trailed, dominating the first half and dominating time of possession in the second half to secure the victory.

After getting a stop, Brother Martin scored on its first possession, driving 67 yards in five plays with Lambert scoring on a 6-yard run to make it 7-0 with 7:43 to play in the opening quarter.

The lead grew to 9-0 with Brennan LeBlanc trapped running back Quintavion White in the end zone for a safety with 4:07 to play in the opening quarter.

Early in the second quarter, Brother Martin struck again, going 48 yards in just three plays with West scoring on an 8-yard run to make it 16-0 with 11:10 to play in the first half. West, who ran 32 yards on the previous play to set up the score, injured his arm and shoulder after the play and did not return.

The Crusader defense was outstanding, holding the Falcons to just 31 yards in the first half.

Brother Martin took the second half kickoff and went on a long 64 yard drive in 16 plays, taking 7:15 off the clock with Leyton Liuzza kicking a 21-yard field goal to make it 19-0 with 4:45 to play in the third quarter.

Northwood finally got on the board, needing just three plays to go 65 yards as White ran three yards for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 19-7 with 3:56 to play in the third quarter.

The Crusaders then came through with another lengthy drive, going 40 yards in 10 plays, taking 4:49 off the clock with Liuzza kicking a 25-yard field goal to make it 22-7 with 11:03 to play in the game.

The Falcons came right back to make it a one-score game on just one play as Mason Welch connected with Marc Denison on a 75-yard touchdown pass to make it 22-14 with 10:50 to play in the game.

Once again, the Crusaders had an answer, driving 41 yards in seven plays, taking 3:29 off the clock with Lambert scoring on a 3-yard touchdown run to make it 28-14 after a missed extra point with 7:02 to play in the game.

Northwood (9-3) had two more possessions and could not get anything done with Greg Jackson interception a Welch pass to clinch the victory. Jackson had two interceptions in the regional round win over St. Augustine.

Welch finished 12 of 24 for 196 yards and a touchdown with an interception as the Falcons saw their 7-game win streak and season come to an end in the quarterfinals for the second straight year.

“I am so proud of these young men,” Brother Martin coach Mark Bonis said. “They have worked through adversity, worked so hard and bought into the process. I thought we played very well up front, for the most part. We knew Torey had a hot hand so we went with him and he delivered for us.”

With the win, Brother Martin (8-5) advances to the semifinals for the fourth straight year and for the sixth time since 2014 under Bonis. Brother Martin will travel to No. 8 Carencro, who upset No. 1 seed Warren Easton.

Brother Martin went to Carencro in the regular season in 2021 and won 35-6.

“We know that anyone you play at this time of the season is going to be very tough to beat,” Bonis said. “We are grateful to be in this position again. It has been four straight years now in this position. That is a credit to our players and coaches.”

FINAL
B. Martin 9 7 3 9 — 28
Northwood 0 0 7 7 — 14

Scoring
1st Qtr.
BM—Torey Lambert, 6-yard run (Leyton Liuzza kick)
BM—Brenden LeBlanc tackles Quintavion White for safety

2nd Qtr.
BM—Jordan West, 8-yard run (Leyton Liuzza kick)

3rd Qtr.
BM—Leyton Liuzza, 21-yard field goal
NORTH—Quintavion White, 3-yard run (Lex Williams kick)

4th Qtr.
BM—Leyton Liuzza, 25-yard field goal
NORTH—Marc Denison, 75-yard pass from Mason Welch (Lex Williams kick)
BM—Torey Lambert, 3-yard run (kick blocked)

First Downs:
BM 19, NORTH 8

Sacks:
BM 2, NORTH 3

Penalties:
BM 1 for 5 yards, NORTH 4 for 20 yards

Rushing:
BM 316, NORTH 15

Passing:
BM 52, NORTH 202

Total Yards:
BM 368, NORTH 217

Individual Rushing:
BM—Torey Lambert 47 carries for 277 yards and 2 touchdowns, Jordan West 3 carries for 42 yards, Clayton Lonardo 6 carries for 2 yards, Seth Dazet 3 carries for -3 yards

NORTH—Quintavion White 6 carries for 11 yards, Mar’Javious Moss 1 carry for 4 yards, Mason Welch 6 carries for 0 yards, Chase Stewart 1 carry for 0 yards

Individual Passing:
BM—Seth Dazet 6 of 9 for 52 yards, Clayton Lonardo 0 for 2

NORTH—Mason Welch 12 of 24 for 196 yards 1 touchdown, 1 interception, Hutson Hearron 1 of 1 for 6 yards

Individual Receiving:
BM—Torey Lambert 2 catches for 20 yards, Clayton Lonardo 3 catches for 19 yards, Nicholas Malek 1 catch for 13 yards

NORTH—Marc Denison 5 catches for 127 yards and 1 touchdown, Quitavion White 3 catches for 13 yards, Mar’Javious Moss 2 catches for 32 yards, Mason Welch 1 catch for 6 yards, Eli Crawford 1 catch for 21 yards, Hutson Hearron 1 catch for 3 yards