Times Herald-Record - recordonline.com
The Hudson Valley Mountaineers are headed to the Empire Football League championship game – just months after opening their inaugural season as a semi-pro franchise.
The top-seeded Mountaineers (9-2) relied on a 35-yard field goal from Colin Ivich in the final minutes to outlast the Tri-City Spartans 9-7 on Saturday. The Spartans (6-5) missed their own game-winning field goal attempt in the final seconds.
It was a fitting reversal of the Mountaineers’ Week 7 matchup, when they missed a go-ahead try with roughly two minutes left in a 7-6 loss.
The Mountaineers’ only touchdown against the Spartans came courtesy of Cornwall graduate Tyler Peddie, whose 31-yard reception in the second quarter was enough to propel Hudson Valley to Saturday’s title matchup with third-seeded Plattsburgh at Middletown High’s Faller Field. Game time is 7 p.m.
The Mountaineers have won both meetings with the North Stars (7-4), who won the EFL championship in 2010 and 2014.
