The Marlboro Iron Dukes didn’t have their starting quarterback for half of the annual Black and Blue Bowl with the Highland Huskies.

Still, it was enough.

The defense got two interceptions from Christopher DeNatale and kept the Huskies off the scoreboard in a 13-0 win on Friday night at Highland High School.

DeNatale’s two interceptions both halted runs by the Huskies into Marlboro territory. His first preserved the Iron Dukes’ 6-0 halftime lead. His second interception also stalled a Highland drive at about the Marlboro 40-yard line.

“It’s great,” DeNatale said. “I haven’t been having the best season, but we worked on it in practice, and I just came back and did my job.”

The Iron Dukes also played the second half without starting quarterback Miles Brooks, who got hit in the helmet and was kept out of the game for precautionary reasons.

That put the pressure not only on the defense, but on the shoulders of backup quarterback Carter Rivieccio. Brooks also is the Iron Dukes’ starting safety.

“We knew to just do our job,” DeNatale said. “We lost Miles, but we knew we had players working hard in practice. We just had to step up, and we did.”

Rivieccio had a rough start to his night at quarterback, getting intercepted by Isaiah Thoben, but on his second drive, he connected with Antonio Hickman for a 42-yard catch-and-run touchdown to give the Iron Dukes a 13-0 lead.

“He’s great,” Marlboro coach Ryan Brooks said. “He gets a lot of reps in practice, and everything. He’s always listening and paying attention. He came in, in a big moment and just kept it going for us. He got the in-game experience and that’s going to be huge for him going forward.”

The Iron Dukes scored a second-quarter touchdown when Brooks connected with Salvatore Montaperto, Jr., in the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown pass.

That was all the Iron Dukes’ defense would need.

“It was a little harder knowing that our offense wasn’t scoring as many points as they can, but they picked it up and got our 13 on the board,” Marlboro linebacker Kadofi Abbott said. “We just got to move on and do better next week.”

Next, the Iron Dukes will host the Wallkill Panthers in a non-league game before hosting the Spackenkill Spartans to close the regular season. With their wins over Red Hook, and now Highland, the Iron Dukes are on track to win Class B Division II and earn a first-round bye in the Sectional playoffs.

The Huskies beat Spackenkill last week, and depending on the outcome of this week’s game against Red Hook, they also are in position for a playoff spot.

“I know this is a rivalry game, but it’s really nothing more than one league game,” Highland coach Tom Schlappich said. “Next week is going to determine where we are seeded in the playoffs. We have to have a short memory, take the next couple of days and heal up, and focus on our next opponent.”