Class C state final: Croton vs. Southwestern
-
- November
- 29
Final
Croton loses 35-7 to Southwestern.
Just spent a half hour speaking with some Croton players and coach John Catano. They admitted they were overwhelmed by Southwestern’s size and depth. But they leave Syracuse proud to have gotten this far. There were some tears, of course. But they seemed to have already put this incredible run into perspective.
I’ll be back later with details after I write my story.
Third quarter
3:30 p.m.: Croton’s miracle run is pretty much over. Southwestern just scored on a Sopak 3-yard keeper. It’s 28-0 with 1:47 left in the third quarter.
Croton got Southwestern to go three-and-out on the opening drive of the half, and then drove to the SW 25. But it couldn’t convert on fourth down. Southwestern drove 77 yards, sparked by two big runs to start the series, and have put it pretty much out of reach.
Second quarter
Nightmarish turn of events for Croton. Joe Tralli fumbled the ensuing kickoff at Croton’s 10 and, two plays later, Southwestern scored. It’s 21-0 with 5:26 left in the half. That’s 21 points in 70 seconds.
2:36 p.m.: Oh oh. Before I could even write about Southwestern’s first scoring drive, the defense deals Croton a crushing blow. Linebacker Ryan Buzzetto returned a fumble 30 yards for a touchdown — on the first play after Southwestern’s Levi Bursch caught a 20-yard score from Zack Sopak.
In the span of 14 seconds, Croton went from tied at 0-0 to down 14-0.
This Southwestern team is beginning to control the line of scrimmage and could be wearing Croton down. How they respond this drive will be telling.
First quarter
We’re through one quarter of play and there’s no score. Croton got the ball first and moved the ball down to the Southwestern 21. After converting a fourth-and-1 earlier in the drive, Nick Mainiero’s pass to Matt Tralli was complete but a yard short of the first.
Southwestern responded by driving effortlessly to the Croton 13. But it had to settle for a 30-yard field goal attempt, which was wide left.
This entry was posted
on Saturday, November 29th, 2008 at 2:21 pm by Kevin Devaney Jr..
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Ouch Croton is being man-handled. I hope they turn this around!!
croton needs to stop making mistakes, they are doing fine but southwestern keeps taking advantage… not good.
good season croton..
33 is a good football player
ouch even worse than i thought..no worries croton this is a good team that ur playing. no one expected you to make it half as far, 11-1 is a season most kids die for..be proud im sure it was an awesome experience..
lets go rye we need one to bring it home
It was a heck of a ride by a bunch of hungry kids. Give them credit NO ONE thought they were going that far. Hats off to a courageous team and a courageous coach
WOW, I am really surprised,
Congrats Croton-Harmon on a great run the Dome
Croton we were rooting you on as soon as you beat us, great season. Nick Maniero is a great player along with his teammates who never gave up. Good Job!
A dreadful minute and a half in the first half can’t erase all you accomplished this season. Congrats Tigers!
Jim…well said! Congrats to all the players, coaches, parents and supporters of Croton! Great job
Croton, from all of us here at Dobbs Ferry, we were rooting for you because you were great players and also very classy. You guys just had an offday against a good team it happens. Cant wait to see you on the gridiron next year. GET LITE
To Croton from a Rye fan.
Tough loss today but congrats on a great season for you guys. Best of luck next year and keep up the great play!
Croton – Congrats on the season. Not many people get the chance to play for a state title. In a weird way, you guys brought the town together.
In all honesty, Southwestern was a lot bigger and just as fast. We couldn’t get any pressure on their qb and they simply wore the Tigers lineman down. Even without the miscues, we lose this game. They were an excellent team. There is nothing to be ashamed of. Good work guys!
I WATCHED THE GAME ON MY COMPUTER, AND CROTON DID NOT LOOK LIKE THE TEAM I WATCHED THE PAST WEEKS, THE OTHER TEAM CAME TO PLAY AND IT LOOKED LIKE CROTON WAS STAGED FRIGHT,AND SLUGGISH, THEY ARE TRULY A BETTER TEAM THEN THE ONE THAT PLAYED TODAY …WE ALL SHOULD BE PROUD OF THEIR REPRESENTATIONS THIS YEAR,CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME TO THE BIG TIME, BIGJOE
I JUST READ A COMPLIMENT FOR #33 ON SOUTHWESTERN and I was surpised that someone else picked him out i watched him during the singing of our national anthem because he could not stand still , he kept moving about like a druged horse before a horse race RE-VIEW THE TAPE AND YOU CAN PICK HIM OUT WAS IT NERVES, DRUGS, OR DISRESPECT SORRY BUT IT WAS MY IMMEDIATE OBSERVATION
Congrats to Croton on a great year- They can be very proud of their accomplishments.
it’s great to be a croton tiger
Croton made too many mistakes, but they were beaten by the better team.
this croton team will still be talked about forever. ain’t nobody ever done better.
SAY, IT’S GREAT, TO BE, A CROTON TIGER!
just back from the dome. off to the Grandstand!
we might lose the game, but we never lose the party!
Nick,
YOU ARE STILL THE MAN!!!!!
A ONCE IN A LIFE TIME PLAYER!!!!!!
amazing job guys. you guys played your hearts out all year and even though u guys lost to a team that won there section two years in a row in b, u still didnt give up and were playing till the end. congrats on a great season lets bring it home next year.
overated..have fun in croton guys, youll be back to losing next year…IDIOTS
someone had a bad season
l3br0n,
this is just the begining for croton. we had the best year in school history and accomplished some great things along the way. southwestern was a good b school that got moved down to C this year due to enrollment. they were a great team and outplayed us. we should be proud of all we did and look forward to croton having another great year next year. they return alot of talent. we are the 2nd best team in the state and im sure the rising seniors and other underclassmen will continue to reshape the history of croton football next year. idk what HS your from, but if it was in class c section1, we were better than you, and if your not in HS, you shouldnt be on this blog talking sh*t…
tm44;
I think we beat 13br0n in Mahopac last month! LOL
is your name Lebron?? or are you on his jock to the point that you represent yourself with his name ?? did you catch a sweaty towel of him at a game sometime, and now roll up in a ball with it every night in your little room plastered with pictures of lebron that you got with a telescopic lens doing things no one should see Lebron doing ?? Have you marked the date Lebron possibly comes to NY so you can be wherever his first press conference with hops that in the crowd he happens to touch you in a row of high fives and fist pounds ?
or maybe your name is Lebron … either way with a post like that you are a JOKE
hey Big Joe, comment better left to yourself about 33 on Southwestern… yeah maybe the kid had something going on but that puts a bad twist on the game. Thank you to other bloggers for not running with that.
Hey 13Bron,
good luck in class B next year… LOL
Big Joe,
I watched the entire first quarter of the game and your comment is inappropriate. The kid was obviously excited about playing in the state championship game. He never stopped moving around before or during the game.
He is a 17 or 18 year old kid and does not deserve your comment.
Sorry but that is my observation.
Congratulations on a great season to the Croton Harmon Tigers.
dont try and ruin there season with a bad comment. they played their hearts out and they you are from dobbs, i thought they had more class at least i know some of them do
big joe –
perhaps #33 is disgusted with our newly elected government- many of us can relate- and has lost all respect for this once great nation. welcome to the USSA.
Hey L3Bron;
“nah nah nah nah; nah nah nah nah; hey hey hey…good luck in B next year!”
who is in B next yr?
dobbs
kevin is this true that dobbs will be in B next year?
they return alot of key players and rye goes to A, that would be funny if dobbs was b champ and rye was a champ
congrats croton on an amazing season, be proud
Westlake is going to a B school next year i don’t think Dobbs is going anywhere. I’m not to sure of that though, there may be some rumors.
I’ve seen a lot of football in my days but none worse then this fluke then Croton being in the Dome . They obviously cant play on such a stage as syracuse and probably will never get there again. because the team that is supposed to win next year will not let Croton get as far as the section finals. AYO NICK WHERE U AT!!!
thats correct
Westlake goes up to B; Dobbs stays in C.
Westlake will lose in B just like in C !!!!!
As a coach I have 2 defend #33 without even seeing him.hopefully someone who was there can back me.being one who could not be still b4 any game I played in and then paying a lot of attention 2 high school athletes prep before competition if a athlete is in this zone u r talking about I would not look at it as a negative but instead use him as an example. I have payed attention to exactly this pregame behavior because those who demonstrate it have generally been the best players on the field. If I saw all my kids like this I may b a bit nervous but at the same time I would know we prepard the right way