The first came midway through the first quarter, when punter Jeff Shelton had to track down a snap that had sailed over his head. Not only did Shelton recover the ball, but he got off a kick that covered 35 yards to Delhi's 22.

For the game, Shelton punted four times for a 39-yard average, which was big in a game where field position played a major role.

"This was a big win, because it's the only close game we've been in and it shows we can come from behind," Shelton said.

The second play came with Delhi driving late in the fourth quarter. On a second-and-8 play from the Walton 10, Delhi quarterback Chris Clark lofted a pass to the back of the end zone, about 10 yards left of the goal post. He was trying to hit David Daye on a crossing route, but Walton's Chris Conway interfered with the big tight end.

It cost Walton 5 yards and gave Delhi a first down, but had Conway not impeded Daye, the play may have resulted in a Bulldogs touchdown as Daye only missed the ball by about 2 yards.

"We said in the huddle (after the penalty), all we have to do is stop them here and the game is ours," Conway said.

Two plays later, Conway knocked down a third-down pass intended for Mike Barnes.

With the speedy Barnes running precise routes and Clark on target, they hooked up nine times for 96 yards.

Two examples came on Delhi's final drive:

• On second-and-8 from Walton's 39, Barnes made a difficult, leaping catch near the right sideline for an 11-yard gain.

• The following play, with the ball on the right hash, Barnes lined up left and ran an out. It was a long pass for Clark to throw, but his tight spiral eluded defensive back Conway and hit Barnes on the numbers. Barnes turned it upfield for a 16-yard gain to Walton's 12.

"Barnes has unbelievable hands," Walton coach Jim Hoover said. "He catches anything that's close to him."

In a wild finish to last season, Delhi lost to Walton, 28-26, beat Greene in overtime, 19-13 in a Class C quarterfinal, beat Lansing, 19-15 in the semis before falling to Walton in the final, 14-13.

The Bulldogs (6-1) will play host to Greene at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. Delhi defeated the Trojans, 34-7, two weeks ago.

With a victory, Delhi could meet third-seeded Lansing (6-1) in the semifinals. The Bobcats play host to Trumansburg (5-2) at 7 p.m. Friday.

Should Delhi advance to the finals, there's a good chance the Bulldogs would get a highly-anticipated rematch with top-seeded Walton (6-1).

Late in Friday night's 17-14, Division III-clinching victory over Windsor, a flag flew after a 9-yard reception by Geoff Bean that took the ball to Black Knights' 2-yard line.

The call was ineligible man downfield, but Art Rigas and staff correctly argued that Bean caught the pass behind the line of scrimmage.

The officials huddled and reversed the call and two plays later, Collin Hoffman kicked a 21-yard field goal that snapped a 14-all tie.

In a Week 2 game against the Susquehanna Valley, the same scenario unfolded, with the officials picking up the flag on a catch by Bean behind the line.

Unlike the past two seasons when Harbin Points kept the Bears out of the playoffs, they will determine their fate Friday.

B-G/A and Elmira ND are both 5-2 and 3-1 in Division IV. The winner will grab the division's second playoff spot, with Chenango Forks (7-0, 4-0) having clinched the title last Saturday with a 27-0 victory over the Bears.

Defensively, B-G/A will try and slow a team that has averaged more than 30 points per game this season.

Rob Centorani covers high school football for The Daily Star. E-mail him at rcentorani@thedailystar.com.