There are comebacks, and then there was what the Holy Cross football team did against Naugatuck in a battle of 4-0 teams on Thursday night at Municipal Stadium’s Ray Snyder Sr. Field.
The Crusaders trailed by 12 points entering the fourth quarter, but rallied to beat stun the Greyhounds, 21-19. Holy Cross improved to 5-0 while Naugatuck fell to 4-1. The NVL has its bye week this coming week.
The Crusaders were in trouble and trailed 19-7 after Cayden Martin’s third touchdown run of the game for the Greyhounds on the first play of the third quarter. Holy Cross still trailed by that margin entering the fourth quarter.
Sophomore quarterback Drew Caouette scrambled for a six-yard touchdown, and Kevin Matiz’s extra point brought the Crusaders to within 19-14 with 8:06 left in the game. Then junior Roehn Maldonado came up with the first of two huge special teams plays. Maldonado hammered the Naugatuck kick returner and Holy Cross recovered the fumble. Just a few plays later, Marquis Campbell punched it into the end zone from seven yards out. Matiz’s third PAT of the game made it 21-19 Crusaders with 6:44 remaining.
The game was far from over. Naugatuck pushed the ball deep into Holy Cross territory as the clock wound down. The Greyhounds set up for a 24-yard field goal for Dominic DeSousa, who has a good leg. That’s when Maldonado came up with his second huge special teams play. Maldonado combined with sophomore Anthony Shivas to get a piece of the DeSousa kick, and the Crusaders held on for a stunning victory.
That was just one game in a busy Week 5. Here’s what else happened:
THURSDAY, OCT. 6
Ansonia 44, Wolcott 6: Matt LaMontagne went 38 yards for the lone Eagle score in the first half of a loss at Jarvis Stadium.
Wolcott fell to 1-4 with the loss while Ansonia remained perfect at 5-0.
FRIDAY, OCT. 7
WCA 21, Crosby 0: Dasani Yates had a rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown for the Spartans in their bounceback win over the Bulldogs at Snyder Field.
Zyaire Ettson, stepping in at quarterback for the injured KaVaughn Canady, also had a rushing touchdown for WCA, which improved to 4-1. Crosby fell to 3-2 with the loss. The game was unfortunately marred by a premature ending with 2:46 to play because of numerous unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.
Wilcox/Kaynor 28, Cheney Tech 21, OT: Brandon Alvarado’s fourth touchdown of the game was the difference for the co-op in their victory in Manchester.
Alvarado ran for three touchdowns and also returned a fumble for another score. Wilcox/Kaynor is 3-2, the best start in program history, according to the Record-Journal.
Berlin 39, Bristol Eastern 6: Jaiden Fore scored from six yards out late in the third quarter of the Lancer loss at Sage Park.
Eastern fell to 0-5 while Berlin remained perfect at 5-0.
Windsor 49, Bristol Central 0: The Rams fell to 1-4 with the home loss to the powerful Warriors (3-2).
SATURDAY, OCT. 8
St. Paul 22, Kennedy 21: Ryan Diaz’s nine-yard touchdown and subsequent two-point conversion run gave the Falcons a thrilling win over the Eagles at McPhee Field.
Diaz had a touchdown run in the first quarter for St. Paul, which improved to 2-3. Brady McManama hooked up with Jeremy Taveras for a 63-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Kennedy fell to 0-5 with the loss. Dereck Ledee had touchdown runs in the first and fourth quarters, and Danny Rodriguez returned a kickoff for a touchdown.
Wilby 36, Derby 0: James Richards ran for touchdowns of 3, 12, 5 and 5 yards for the Wildcats (2-3) in their shutout of the Red Raiders at Snyder Field.
Aaron James and Jaremiah Coleman connected for a 72-yard touchdown.
PHOTO CAPTION: Holy Cross quarterback Drew Caouette helped his team rally from a 12-point deficit for a terrific 21-19 win over Naugatuck on Thursday. (Copyright, Sports on CT-69, file)
