SECTION IV FOOTBALL: OWEGO STOPS TWO-POINT CONVERSION IN FINAL MINUTES; EDGES WAVERLY, 35-34, IN INSTANT CLASSIC (22 PHOTOS) (September 18, 2026)
By TIM BIRNEYValley Sports ReportWAVERLY — Owego Free Academy stopped Waverly's two-point conversion with 2:51 remaining to preserve a 35-34 win here Friday night in Section IV football action at Memorial Stadium.
The River Hawks scored on its first five possessions, and ran the game clock out on its sixth possession, while the Wolverines scored TDs in five of their six possessions, but committed the game's only turnover.
"There have been a lot of times over the course of the last 10 years where our defense has kind of kept us in games," said Waverly coach Jason Miller. "To give up that many points and and still put yourself in a position to win, I'm proud of that.
"I'm really proud of the way the offense was able to keep us in it tonight," he said. "I like the way we kept coming back at them. It's the same kids on offense that are on defense. They have a mentality.
"Offensively, we improved this week, and there's little things we've been building on now for four weeks," added Miller. "I just think we're going to continue to grow."
Led by sophomore QB Cooper Chrystie, Waverly piled up 419 yards in total offense to Owego's 284.
Cooper Chrystie completed 20 of 30 passes for 246 yards, and two TDs, and also led the Wolverine ground game with 117 yards and three TDs on 21 carries.
Sophomore Carter Christie led Waverly's receiving corps with 11 receptions for 118 yards and one TD, while senior Chase Wheeler had five grabs for 35 yards, senior Matthias Welles had two catches for 48 yards, and junior Sammy Cheresnowsky had two receptions for 45 yards and one TD.
Senior Bryce LaForest gained 38 yards on 10 carries, and senior Rylen Larson added 18 yards on five carries for the Wolverines.
Owego's Dylan Brace, who was 5-for-5 in PAT kicks, led Owego's ground game, which accounted for 270 yards on 40 carries, with 185 yards and three TDs on 28 carries, while Lynkon Craft had 40 yards and two TDs on five carries, and John Farrell added 40 yards on three carries.
Owego coach Patton Taylor tipped his cap to his offensive line.
"All week, the message to the o-line was to slow things down and execute.
"I think the first couple weeks, we were trying to do too much and we were just not getting the small details correct," said Taylor.
"So the heavy emphasis heading into this game was taking our time, slowing things down and focusing on execution, and they did a fantastic job," added Taylor.
Owego completed its only pass of the night for 14 yards.
"That's all we needed to throw," said Taylor with a smile.
Taylor also tipped his cap to the Waverly offense, but was pleased with his defensive performance overall.
"That's a great program on the other side," said Taylor. "Coach Miller does a good job, (Cooper) Chrystie is a fantastic quarterback and they have weapons all over the field, they're very athletic.
"Defensively, we just wanted to make them earn it. We wanted to avoid giving up the big play," he noted.
"The last couple weeks, we had some big plays against us, where we kind of let up and it really changed the outcome of the game.
"I couldn't be happier about how hard the kids played on both sides of the ball," added Taylor.
The River Hawks took the opening kickoff and marched 65 yards on nine plays in a drive that consumed nearly 5 1/2 minutes. Brace ripped off 40 yards on five carries, but it was Craft who finished off the drive with a 10-yard TD run.
The Wolverines answered with a 13-play, 83-yard scoring drive that consumed all but the final six seconds of the opening stanza to tie the game at 7-7.
Cooper Chrystie was 5-for-5 for 65 yards, with three connections to his twin brother for 25 yards, a 29-yard pass to Welles, and a 14-yard hook-up with Wheeler.
Cooper Chrystie scampered in from 3 yards out with 6 seconds left in the quarter, and junior Jesse Lantz split the uprights on the PAT kick to tie the game at 7-7.
The River Hawks regained the lead with a nine-play, 65-yard drive, capped by Craft's 5-yard TD run to make it 14-7 with 7:59 remaining in the first half.
The Wolverines had another answer, driving 54 yards on nine plays. Cooper Chrystie was 5-for-7 on the drive for 63 yards, including two hook-ups with Carter Chrystie for 38 yards.
Waverly found the end zone on a 24-yard TD pass to Cheresnowsky to close the gap to 14-13 with 4:00 remaining in the half. The extra-point attempt was blocked.
After Farrell returned the ensuing kickoff to the Waverly 28, Owego extended its lead with a five-play drive — all carries by Brace, who scored on a 2-yard run with 1:03 left in the half to extend the River Hawk lead to 21-13.
After the kickoff, Waverly was 75 yards away from the end zone and had just 54 seconds to work with.
Cooper Chrystie completed 5 of 7 passes for 64 yards on the drive — two to Carter Chrystie for 25 yards, two to Wheeler for 20 yards, and one to Welles for 19 yards. He finished off the drive with a 1-yard TD run as time expired, then added the conversion run to send the game into the half tied at 21-21.
Miller was disappointed by the special-teams play that allowed Owego to extend its lead, but was very pleased with how his kids responded.
"I think we're becoming a more of explosive offense," said Miller. "We have Matthias in the middle, and a little bit of speed on the outside.
"And, the line did an absolutely outstanding job in protection. Maybe a few blitzes got to Cooper (Chrystie), but he's elusive and made it look better than what it was," added Miller.
Waverly, which won the pre-game coin toss and deferred, took the second-half kickoff, and marched 73 yards on 14 plays in a drive that chewed more than five minutes off the game clock.
Cooper Chrystie was just 2-for-4 for 11 yards in the drive, but the Waverly ground gain came to life. LaForest gained 28 yards on six carries, and Chrystie rushed four times for 34 yards, including a 3-yard TD run with 6:50 remaining. Lantz's PAT kick made it 28-21.
Owego answered with a 10-play, 66-yard scoring drive, with Brace, who had 49 yards on six carries in the possession, finishing it off with a 2-yard TD run with 1:02 left in the third quarter. Brace's PAT kick made it 28-28.
After mishandling the ensuing kickoff, Waverly was pinned at its own 10. Two plays later, Cooper Chrystie brought the home crowd to its feet with an electrifying 80-yard run, but it was nullified by a holding call.
On third-and-15 from the 5-yard line, Cooper Chrystie, rolling to his left and with an Owego defender clutching to his jersey, fired a pass down field intended for his brother, but Cheresnowsky made a sliding catch five yards behind him for a 21-yard gain and a first down.
After two more first downs, the Wolverines coughed the ball up at the Owego 44. Five plays later, in a drive that included a 22-yard run by Brace, and 18-yard run by Farrell, and a 9-yard run by Craft, Brace scored on a 2-yard run to give the River Hawks a 35-28 lead with 8:55 remaining in the game.
Once again pounding the ball on the ground, Waverly moved the ball from its 32 to Owego's 4 on 10 plays.
Three plays later, after a drop in the end zone, Waverly faced a fourth-and-goal at the Owego 7, but the Chrystie brothers hooked up on a 7-yard TD pass with 2:51 remaining to close the gap to 35-34.
After a timeout, Cooper Chrystie rolled to his left and fired a pass into the front corner of the end zone, but the River Hawk defense batted the ball away to preserve the lead.
Owego recovered the onside kick, then picked up a pair of first downs on three rushing plays, before taking a knee on three consecutive snaps to run out the clock.
Waverly falls to 1-2, and will host Class A Horseheads Friday.
"We knew coming in into the year that these first four games are going to be battles, and I think we've made them battles," said Miller.
"Even though last week got a little lopsided," noted Miller in reference to a 40-7 loss at Maine-Endwell. "It was a very physical game, but that teaches you to learn a lot about yourself."
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IN TOP PHOTO: Waverly's Cooper Chrystie. IN BOTTOM PHOTO: Waverly's Carter Chrystie. ... PHOTOS BY TIM BIRNEY.
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