John Raffel
Sports Scene
Lucas Slater is likely to remember his final touchdown with the Ithaca Yellow Jackets for a long time.
The senior linebacker returned a fumble 62 yards against Constantine in the Division 6 state championship game November 25 at Ford Field.
Ithaca won the game 42-14 for its second straight 14-0 state championship season.
Slater’s play gave Ithaca a key 35-14 lead early in the fourth quarter and all but sealed the deal for another Yellow Jacket state title.
It was his second return for a touchdown this season. Slater recalls that the play could have been a final dagger in Constantine’s championship hopes.
Constantine tormented the Ithaca defense with two touchdowns on its first two possessions.
“We knew fullback trap was coming,” Slater said. “We knew they were going to run it. The first few times, Garrett [Miniard]) and I hit him and he just got away. [They disguised the football] very well. I didn’t know where the football was at. We had a responsibility as a defense and we knew we had to tackle everyone. That’s what we did.”
Slater was a key player in the preseason as Ithaca began defending its state title.
“I thought we had a great chance [to repeat],” he said. “Anything else would have been a disappointment for our team. We had six returning starters. We were ready.”
Slater said the win over Iron Mountain 28-0 in the semifinals gave his team plenty of confidence, although there was also a major scare against Montague in the third round.
Being 28-0 in the last two years “is more than a dream,” Slater said. “You’re young and you dream of a state title. And we had a chance to go back-to-back.”
Slater realizes he’ll have some special memories to relish from the last two years.
“Just the guys I got to play with,” he said. “They’re some of my best friends. Getting to go on the big stage with these guys is something I’ll aways remember.”