I don't really know where to start with this one, but if you were there, you don't need me to retell anything that happened. For those who weren't, here's a little bit of a summary of what went down:
Derby went up, 20-7, by the end of the first quarter. A 62-yard screen pass by Ray Kreiger to Brian Dobek on the second play of the game set up a 1-yard touchdown run by RaRa Hendricks. Ansonia answered on a Tebow-like 20-yard touchdown pass by Montrell Dobbs to Jake LaRovera to go up, 7-6.
Hendricks returned the ensuing kickoff for a 75-yard touchdown and Ansonia botched a snap on a punt on its next series, giving Derby the ball at the Ansonia 20. A few plays later, Kreiger hooked up with Zach Salazar on a quick slant to give Derby a 20-7 lead with one second left in the first quarter.
Elliott Chudwick tossed his first touchdown pass of the night on the next drive, finding LaRovera on a 10-yard fade to pull within 20-13 midway through the second. After the teams traded a few possessions, Derby had the ball at its own 20 with 1:24 left in the half. On the first play of the drive, Kreiger threw a perfect go-route to Jacob Tomczak for an 80-yard touchdown to give the Raiders a 26-13 halftime lead.
Ansonia scored on its first possession of the half as Dobbs found the end zone for the first time with a 5-yard run, making it 26-19 with 8:30 to go in the third. But Derby answered again as Kreiger kept a bootleg play alive for five or six seconds before hitting Tomczak in the back of the end zone for a 32-19 lead with 6:22 left in the third.
That was Derby's last score of the night. In the closing minutes of the third quarter, Chudwick threw his second touchdown pass when he connected with Arkeel Newsome in the left-side flat for a 20-yard score, making it 32-25.
The teams traded a few more possessions before the Chargers took over at their own 40 with 7:29 to go. Ansonia went on an 11-play drive lasting 5:11 where almost all of the yardage was gained by Dobbs, including the 3-yard touchdown run that saw him flip over the goal line to make it 32-31.
Then, the decision to go for two. Dobbs fairly easily ran into the end zone to give Ansonia its first lead since the 2:44 mark of the first quarter at 33-32.
Kreiger drove the Raiders down field, getting all the way to the Ansonia 22, but on the final three plays of the drive, he lost two yards on a failed scramble, threw incomplete to Tomczak in the end zone, and was intercepted by Newsome as time expired.
Final stat lines: Dobbs- 48 rush, 286 yards, 2 TD, 20-yard TD pass; Chudwick- 6-of-12, 82 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT; LaRovera- 3 rec, 45 yards, 2 TD; Kreiger- 13-of-25, 236 yards, 3 TD, INT; Hendricks- 8 rush, 64 yards, TD, 75-yard return TD; Tomczak- 4 rec, 122 yards, 2 TD
Here's a link to my Rep-Am article. What a game. Let me give Derby a ton of credit. I didn't think it would be that much of a game, nor did I think the Raiders could put together such an impressive offensive performance, especially in the first half. Derby would have probably won the game if not for a few crucial drops in the second half, but Ansonia is just too good and takes advantage of those mistakes. That's why the Chargers are now Brass Division champions.
In other news:
- Torrington beat Wilby, 61-28. Brenden Lytton rushed for 332 yards on 42 carries with 8 touchdowns and returned an interception for a ninth score, breaking a state record. He also added seven PAT kicks and scored every one of the Raiders' 61 points.
- Naugatuck beat Kennedy, 36-13. Erich Broadrick injured his knee at the end of the second quarter but played the entire second half. Rob Plasky says he has an MCL strain but should be ready to play against Woodland next week. The Hounds really buckled down and played well in the second half, which might provide a little momentum into next week's game.
- Woodland beat St. Paul, 36-7. Jack DeBiase had his best game of the season with 231 rush yards and 4 rush TD along with 83 pass yards and a TD pass. In all, the Hawks ran for 445 yards and had over 500 yards of total offense. Woodland's defense played great again. The Hawks will have a shot at the Copper Division crown against Naugy next week. What might kill Woodland is its sudden inability to convert PATs. The Hawks missed all six opportunities against the Falcons.
- Holy Cross beat Sacred Heart, 32-26. The Crusaders overcame a 20-7 halftime deficit thanks to a 286-yard, 2-TD performance by Brandon DiClementi, a go-ahead touchdown pass out of the wildcat by Kairyn Boxton, and a game-sealing interception by Dave DiGiorgi.
- Watertown beat Wolcott, 21-14. No details on this one yet, but Wolcott's playoff hopes are all gone now. Who would have thought with the start the Eagles had they would now be 4-3 and in fifth place in the Brass?
- Crosby beat Seymour, 39-27. It looks like Seymour will be 0-10 this season with games against Wolcott (4-3), Ansonia (7-0), and Woodland (5-2) left.
