Riding a stout defense, the Watertown Red and Black began its season Saturday night with a 6-3 exhibition victory over the Lyndonville Tigers at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds.

The Red and Black defense, led by linebacker Mike Dumaw, limited Lyndonville to just a second-quarter field goal. Dumaw registered seven solo tackles and nine assists to lead the defense.

Linebacker Greg Roberson had two quarterback sacks and four tackles, defensive end James Moore came up with two fumble recoveries, Ben Call had three sacks, and Dusty Houppert and Ben Pritchard each added eight tackles.

"The defense played really well," said Watertown head coach George Ashcraft. "The offense got off to a slow start. But we've got some good personnel and three weeks to get ready (for the regular season)."