Pawling Tiger Football at Bronxville

On Saturday at Bronxville, Pawling played well enough to win on defense, but the Tigers were unable to mount a consistent offense against the Broncos.

“I thought we played pretty well,” coach Carl Ferraro said. “Anthony Reda got hurt during warm-ups, and that really set us back on offense before we even started the game. I thought we played very well on defense, when our kids held Bronxville to three points all the way to the fourth quarter. We had them stopped for a third down and long at their own 18-yard line in the fourth quarter, and they got outside our contain with a draw and went all the way for the 82-yard touchdown. I thought that was the turning point of the game, because it made it 10-0 and made it look very difficult to come back. They intercepted two passes and scored on short drives, and the final score of 23-0 made it look much worse than it was.

“Basically, all the teams in the league seem about equal, except for Dobbs Ferry. We are 1-1 now, and if we can get our share of wins in the next four games, we are really okay. We play at Dobbs Ferry this Thursday, then at Dover the following Wednesday, and we finish with home games against Lincoln Hall and Croton, so the fact is, we can have a very good season. The key is going to keep everybody healthy, and of course, we have to have a healthy Anthony Reda.”

Zach Soechtig intercepted a Bronco pass at the Pawling 12 to stop a Bronxville drive with 4:46 left in the first half, but Pawling was three and out on the offensive series, giving the Broncos the ball back in time for Bronxville to kick a field goal and take a 3-0 lead into the halftime.

Holding Bronxville to three points in the first half was an outstanding achievement, especially when Pawling was unable to eat up the clock with the sound running game they had in the season-opening 34-16 win over Haldane. The defense never allowed the Broncos to mount a long drive, giving up one touchdown on one 82-yard draw play, and two touchdowns after the Broncos returned interceptions deep into Pawling territory to the 17- and the 3-yard line.

Doug Lenonaggeo had an amazing game at linebacker for Pawling. In the opening series of the second half, Leonaggeo blitzed and dropped the Broncos for two losses, as Pawling forced Bronxville to punt the ball. When Bronxville went for it on fourth and two at the Pawling 37-yard line, Leonaggeo knifed through and pounded the running back with a solo tackle for a two-yard loss, and the Tigers took over on downs.

Nick Cato, Cody Clarkson and John Petti were jamming the middle, and though Bronxville was able pick up a few first downs, they never mounted a long drive for a touchdown in the entire game against the tenacious Pawling defense.

Pawling had actually stopped Bronxville on the Broncos’ first possession of the fourth quartet, forcing them into a desperate third-and-thirteen situation at the Bronxville 18-yard line, but the Broncos ran a draw and got outside to ran all the way for the 82-yard touchdown that made it 10-0 with 9:09 left in the fourth quarter.

When Pawling was unable to move the ball consistently on the ground, the Tigers went to the air, and Bronxville took advantage. The Broncos intercepted two Pawling passes, returning one to the Pawling 17-yard line in the third quarter, and one to the Pawling 3-yard line in the fourth quarter. The Broncos converted on both for touchdowns, and won the game 23-0.

Basically, the same 11 Tigers played well enough on defense to win the game, but could not mount the offense they needed to stay in the game in the fourth quarter.