SECTION IV FOOTBALL: CHENANGO VALLEY SCORES PAIR OF FOURTH-QUARTER TDs TO BREAK OPEN TIE GAME; TOPS WAVERLY, 34-26 (15 PHOTOS) (2019-09-27)
Valley Sports ReportBINGHAMTON "” Junior QB Rory Thompson ripped off a pair of long TD runs in a four-minute span late in the fourth quarter to propel Chenango Valley to a 34-26 win over Waverly here Friday night in Section IV, Division II football action.
"I liked the way we played," said Waverly coach Jason Miller. "We were resilient, and I liked the attitude of our kids.
"We're not playing perfect, and we really need to if we want to win at this level, against this competition," he noted. "That said, there are so many more good football plays for us, than there are bad football plays, and that's encouraging.
"The thing is those few bad plays were certainly the difference in this game," added Miller. "We need to be disciplined the entire game on defense, because two or three plays against these types of offenses can make the difference, and that's really what it was tonight."
Thompson's second TD was a 66-yard jaunt with 2:19 remaining to make it 34-20, but Waverly quickly drove down the field on its ensuing possession with 8th-grade QB Joey Tomasso caping the drive with a 4-yard TD pass - his fourth of the game - to senior Ethan Stotler with 16 seconds remaining.
Moments later, CV recovered the ensuing onside-kick attempt to seal the victory.
Miller reiterated his praise for his team's resiliency throughout the game.
"(CV) had a pick 6, and we fumbled in the first quarter, there were a lot of different ways we weren't successful. We were down 20-7 going into the second quarter, but we were able to tie it up going into the half.
"Even at the end of the game, (CV) ran their second mid-line option play for a touchdown in the span
of about four minutes to put them up 34-20, and that for most teams would have been a back-breaker.," said Miller. "But with under two minutes left, we drove right down the field, and with 16 seconds remaining we're lined up for an onside kick, and we still had a chance to tie the game.
"I really credit our kids for playing hard the entire game, and not quitting," added Miller. "We were just a few plays away."
The Warriors opened the game with a 10-play drive, adeptly mixing runs and passes, to take a 6-0 lead. Zach Wood capped the drive with a 1-yard TD plunge with 7:35 remaining in the first quarter.
Waverly answered with a quick scoring drive, capped by a Tomasso 42-yard strike to junior Aidan Westbrook with 5:07 left in the first quarter. Junior Alex Gadow's PAT kick gave the Wolverines a 7-6 lead.
With 1:43 remaining in the first quarter, Thompson hooked up with Shane Ladd on a 30-yard TD pass to take a 13-7 lead.
On Waverly's ensuing possession, Ladd stepped in front of a Tomasso pass and raced 52 yards for a score on the final play of the first quarter to give the Warriors a 20-7 lead.
After an exchange of turnovers, the Wolverines put together a drive, capped by Tomasso's 21-yard TD pass to senior Jalen McCarty, who had a career-high 10 catches for 112 yards, with 39 seconds remaining in the half to trim the deficit to 20-13.
On the first play after the ensuing kickoff, Waverly picked off a CV pass. Moments later, Tomasso hooked up with Stotler on a 15-yard TD pass on the final play of the first half. Gadow's PAT kick tied the game at 20-20.
After nearly 18 minutes of scoreless football, Thompson broke loose on a 45-yard keeper on the mid-line option to take a 27-20 lead with 6:19 remaining in the contest.
On the first play after the ensuing kickoff, Tomasso was intercepted again and CV set up shop on its own 40. However, the Warriors fumbled the ball right back to the Wolverines, who were then forced to punt after three plays.
Three plays later, Thompson gave CV a 34-20 lead with his 66-yard TD run.
Miller said his team had its chances in the game.
"We had opportunity after opportunity," said Miller. "(CV) fumbled five or six times, and we only recovered one. Those are opportunities we didn't take advantage of."
Tomasso completed 18 of his 32 pass attempts for a career-high 268 yards and a career-high four TDs. He was also intercepted twice.
Stotler had five catches for 88 yards and two TDs for the Wolverines, while Westbrook had two catches for 52 yards, and Caden Wheeler added one grab for 15 yards.
Junior David Hallett led Waverly's ground gain, which accounted for 126 yards on 30 carries, with 72 yards on 14 carries, while McCarty added 28 yards on four carries, and junior Austin Kimble chipped in with 26 yards on eight carries.
Thompson finished with 143 yards and two TDs on 11 carries, and also completed 6 of 12 passes for 107 yards and one TD, while being intercepted twice.
Waverly, now 2-2, hosts Owego Friday night.
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IN PHOTO 1: Waverly's Jalen McCarty. ... PHOTOS COURTESY OF SHANNON McCARTY.
