PORT ALLEGANY – The class of the AML by a wide margin.

Port Allegany whipped up on Brockway for the second week in a row, 54-7 in the AML Title Game, leaving no doubt as to who the conference’s best team is.

Matt Bodamer and Nick Conway hooked up for three touchdowns and each accounted for a defensive score for the Gators, who outscored Brockway 109-27 the last two weeks.

It was the second straight AML championship for Port Allegany (10-0), which also beat Brockway (8-2), 56-27, in last year’s game. 

“This (AML title) is nice for the kids and the school, but we have bigger aspirations,” said Port Allegany coach Mike Bodamer.

Brockway actually held Bodamer, the state record holder in passing touchdowns and yardage, to his lowest yardage output of the season (144). But that didn’t matter, as the Gators found a variety of different ways to score.

Tyler Shaffer emerged as another weapon opponents will have to worry about in the playoffs, as the junior running back carried the ball for 146 yards and two touchdowns.

“Shaffer played big for us today with a couple of nice runs,” Bodamer said.

The key play in the game actually came midway through the first quarter with Port holding a 7-0 advantage.

The Rovers defense forced a turnover on downs, the first time they had held the Port A. starting offense without a touchdown since last season.

Facing a third-and-3 on the ensuing possession, Chad Melillo carried the ball to the Brockway 45, good enough for a first down. Bodamer, however, showed that he is more than just a great quarterback, ripping the ball out of Melilo’s hands and racing 45 yards untouched for the score.

“I don’t know how Matt did it,” Bodamer said. “He just kind of came up and took I,t and then I saw him running, just a good, heads up play.”

Brockway briefly made the game interesting, with Alec Shaffer-Doan connecting with Kyle Titler on a 25-yard touchdown, capping a 75-yard drive that made it 14-7.

The Gators, however, put any thoughts of a competitive game to bed, as Bodamer and Conway hooked up for a 49-yard touchdown  just one-play after a rare drop from Conway.

“Him (Conway) and Tyce (Miller) just work so well together,” Bodamer said. “Matt knows what they are going to do and they go out and make plays.”

Shaffer, who needed just four carries for his 146 yards, broke loose on runs of 27 and 89 yards in the final five minutes of the second quarter. The 89 yarder was sprung by a big block from Conway, and Shaffer showed off his speed from there.

“I think that play was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Bodamer said.

It was more of Conway in the third quarter, as he and Bodamer paired for their third score of the day, this one a 20 yarder that made it 42-7 and put the Mercy Rule in effect. The Rovers left Conway in one-on-one coverage for most of the day, and he took full advantage of it.

“I like the one-on-one coverage,” Conway said. “It’s just me versus one man. Last week they pressed and had a safety over the top, but this game they just pressed.”

The Rovers put together a nice drive on the ensuing possession, but a big hit from Alex Gular on Melillo at the 20-yard line jarred the ball loose. After a couple of Gators failed to pounce on the ball, Conway scooped it up and raced 83 yards for a touchdown.

“Gular popped the ball loose and Victor (Bandish) tried to dive on it,” Conway recalled. “Those lineman love to get fumbles, but it somehow squirted through him. I just scooped it up. We practice that scoop and score all the time.”

The Gators added a late score from R.J. Vellieux to put the icing on a 10-0 run heading into the playoffs.

Port Allegany enters the District 9 Class A playoffs as the No. 1 seed, with an opponent still to be determined. Brockway enters the playoffs as the No. 3 seed and will host Curwensville, whom they beat 56-34 in Week 6.

Port Allegany 54, Brockway 7

Score by Quarters

Brockway 0 7 0 0 — 7

Port Allegany 14 20 14 6 — 54

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

P — Nick Conway 43 pass from Matt Bodamer (Scott Brookens kick), 10:33

P — Bodamer 45 fumble return (Brookens kick), 4:40

Second Quarter

B — Kyle Titler 25 pass from Alec Shaffer-Doan (Philip Esposito kick), 10:14

P — Conway 49 pass from Bodamer (Brookens kick), 9:15

P — Tyler Shaffer 27 run (Brookens kick), 4:41

P — Shaffer 89 run (Kick failed), 1:41

Third Quarter

P — Conway 20 pass from Bodamer (Bodamer pass to Miller for 2-point conversion), 9:03

P — Conway 83 fumble return (Kick blocked), 5:03

Fourth Quarter

P — R.J. Vellieux 1 run (Conversion failed), 1:54

B P

First Downs          10 13

Rushes-Yards 33-103 32-231

Comp-Att-Int 8-24-2 9-15-0

Passing Yards 127 176

Total Yards 230 407

Fumbles-Lost 4-3 2-0

Punts-Avg. 3-25.6 2-31.0

Individual Statistics

Rushing - Brockway: Chad Melillo 18-66, Anthony Benson 6-34, Alec Shaffer Doan 8-4, Jacob Foradora 1(-)1. Port Allegany - Tyler Shaffer 4-146, Trent Neal 9-37, Matt Bodamer 11-36, , Tyce Miller 1-3, Jordan Seefeldt 5-8, Mac Tanner 1-0, R.J. Vellieux 1-1

Passing - Brockway: Alec Shaffer-Doan 8-for-22, 127 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs, Braden Martini 0-for-2. Port Allegany - Matt Bodamer 7-13, 144 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, Jordan Seefeldt 2-for-2, 32 yards

Receiving - Brockway: Anthony Benson 4-45, Jake Perrin 2-30, Chad Melillo 1-27, Kyle Titler 1-25. Port Allegany - Nick Conway 4-115, Trey Miller 1-13, Tyce Miller 2-16, Josh Poorman 1-35, Chris Lashway 1-(-) 3.