Pascack Valley could afford to run the ball in the second half while having a secure handle on the lead against Montclair.

The Mounties, who had brought a 24-game win streak into Hillsdale, could not keep up with the run game in the second half as Indians prevailed 29-14 Friday in the season opener for both teams at Pascack Valley.

The Indians opened up the second half with a drive consisting of all runs. The offensive linemen were creating large holes for senior Jorge Cortes, who had 182 yards on 35 carries, by dominating the line of scrimmage. PV coach Craig Nielsen was pleased with this statement drive very early in the second half.

“We never had to throw the ball and still scored,” said Nielsen, whose squad extended its home win streak to 15 games.

The Indians led at halftime 15-6 after an 11-yard touchdown pass from Colin Dedrick to tight end Greg Collier in the second quarter.

“I saw him and nothing around him,” Dedrick said.

In the first half, Dedrick found success throwing the ball over the middle. The junior quarterback only had 2 incompletions in the second quarter.

“In planning the entire week, we thought that the middle would be open,” said Dedrick. who finished the game 15-for-23 with 178 yards in the air.

The Indians defense also held Montclair’s high powered offense to a total of 14 points. One of the playmakers for the Mounties, last year’s North 1, Group 5 champion, was their quarterback, Elijah Robinson. The Indians contained Robinson well throughout the entire game.

“He could throw it and run it,” said PV defensive coordinator Jim Cleary. “(Our) boys executed and did a great job.”

The Indians look like the same team that won the North 1, Group 4 championship just a season ago, but the coaches and players view this game as a stepping stone for greater things to come.

“Montclair is a nice win. It’s not the goal, but it’s a step toward our goal,” said Cleary.

The Indians have passed their first test of the season and now look to continue their winning ways next week at home against a rugged DePaul squad. On Oct. 12 of last year, the Indians fell to DePaul 23-6 to drop to to 2-2 on the season before reeling off eight straight wins en route to their first state title since 1990.