Overtime specialists: NHS rallies to beat Sabers
NORWICH - Susquehanna Valley has been tabbed by the local experts as the next big up-and-coming program, and perhaps the heir apparent in Class B to Maine-Endwell.
Someone must have forgot to tell that to Norwich Friday night.
On an evening when 18 Purple Tornado seniors were honored before the game, NHS overcame a 17-3 halftime deficit rallying to beat the Sabers, 20-17, in overtime. Zan Stewart’s 19-yard field goal sealed the win for Norwich (4-3) as the entire roster rejoiced near the endzone.
It was the second straight year Norwich has beaten Susquehanna Valley in extra minutes, and with the victory is in position to clinch its first outright division title in five years. “I’m not going to call this a program win, but this was a step in the right direction,” said Norwich second-year coach Mike Chrystie. “We’ve won four in a row, and going into next week at Oneonta, if we take care of business, who knows? We can make a run at it (in the playoffs), and anything can happen in sectionals.”
Anything can happen on the football field, but at this point of the season, the script is usually fixed. Teams with 5-1 records that beat teams by three or more touchdowns per game usually beat .500 clubs.
Susquehanna Valley, winners of four straight coming in, looked the part of favorite for most of the first half. The Sabers marched 67 yards on their opening drive – all runs – for the initial score of the game. Quarterback David Matthews kept the ball on an option to the right, and scored easily from nine yards out. Byron Jackson’s two-point conversion made it 8-0.
On the next sequence, Norwich quarterback Cole Rifanburg was intercepted on a third-down pass by Jake Hawley. Hawley and Norwich receiver Stewart went up for a jump ball, and Hawley tipped the ball to himself making a fine play to reel the ball in.
SV looked to quickly capitalize on Norwich’s lone turnover of the game. After driving to the one, a fourth-and-goal TD run by Matthews was waved off due to an “aiding the runner” penalty. A subsequent false start penalty by the Sabers forced a 29-yard field goal by Lain Zembek.
That first defensive stop was a sign Norwich wasn’t about to cave in on its last scheduled home game of the season.
Following that score, Norwich executed its first sustained drive of the game. A bruising 29-yard run by senior Mike Oralls set the tone for things to come later on, and Stewart’s 32-yard field goal with 3:01 left in the first half put Norwich on the board.
Sus Valley regained the momentum with a quick-strike touchdown. To this point in the game, the visitors had called 27 straight running plays. Play 28, the Sabers went to the air with great success. Matthews dropped back, and hit Jack Lamantia on a slant pass in the middle of the field. Lamantia was free and clear when he caught the ball, and had nothing but open field in front of him as he raced for the 74-yard touchdown.
“I think they definitely won the first half, but in the second half… .” Chrystie said.
The second half, well, Norwich made some revisions in the script. “We started to contain their blitzing, and we knew if made a good down block, we could get some yardage off tackle,” Chrystie said.
Oralls, the area’s top rusher and almost a sure bet to reach 1,000 yards this season, had just six carries in the first half. Over the next two quarters plus overtime, Oralls’ workload more than tripled. Too, quarterback Cole Rifanburg sprinkled in some timely runs and a couple of pass completions to keep the SV defense honest.
The tenor of the game changed dramatically late in the third quarter. Sus Valley took over at its 23 after forcing a Norwich punt. Two plays into the drive, Hawley’s 12-yard first-down run was wiped away due to a holding penalty. Jackson gained five yards back, but in a third-and-long, SV was forced into a passing situation.
The Sabers proved they could pass as a change of pace when the defense wasn’t expecting it. But could they pass when they had to?
For one play, no.
Matthews looked right in the flat, but his pass was intercepted by NHS senior linebacker Jacob Perrone. It was Perrone’s second interception in as many weeks, and he returned it 13 yards to the SV 15. Five plays later, Oralls scored from three yards out for Norwich’s first touchdown. “So much of high school football is mental,” Chrystie said. “Jacob’s interception was a real momentum shifter and everyone stepped up after that – the offensive line, the defense….”
After yet another Norwich defensive stop, an Oralls 12-yard first-down run kick-started a 12-play , 80-yard TD drive. Rifanburg hit Stewart on a 15-yard completion for a first down on third-and-long to extend the drive. Rifanburg added a 24-yard run, and Oralls was responsible for much of the rest. Oralls’ second three-yard score and Stewart’s successful conversion kick tied the game at 17 with 7:23 to play.
Neither team threatened until late in the game when Sus Valley moved to the Norwich 25 with 1.6 seconds left. Zembek’s 41-yard field goal attempt as time expired narrowly missed to the right.
In overtime, Sus Valley was headed in the wrong direction almost from the start
Kyle Novolbilski’s first-down run inside Norwich’s 10 was expunged from the statistics after a 15-yard chop block penalty. Situated at the 34, Nick Murphy threw Zembek for a three-yard loss, and on fourth down, Matthews’ desperation pass was knocked down at the one-yard line by Norwich senior Tristan Rifanburg.
From the moment Norwich took over at the 20, Oralls was the go-to back. Five straight runs took the NHS back to the two yard line, and on fourth down, Stewart calmly struck his 19-yard field goal through the center of the uprights.
“I thought I was going to get into the endzone on that last run,” Oralls said, who scored the winning TD in overtime in last year’s 19-13 at SV. “But I had a lot of confidence in Zan.”
Oralls had his fifth 100-yard rushing performance of the season running for 104 hard-fought yards on 25 carries. Cole Rifanburg had 58 yards rushing and 60 yards passing on 6-of-10 attempts.
The victory for Norwich was its first this season against a team with a winning record, and it is now just another win away from hosting a Class B playoff game. “On paper, I don’t think a lot of people gave our program a lot of credit going into this game,” Chrystie said. “We knew if we stayed the course, we would find success. And we did.”
Norwich closes its regular season Friday at Oneonta.
Score by quarters OT
SVall 8 9 0 0 0--17
Nor. 0 3 7 7 3--20
Scoring Summary
First quarter
SV: Dave Matthews 9 run (Byron Jackson run)
Second quarter
SV: Lain Zembek 29 field goal
N: Zan Stewart 32 field goal
SV: Dave Matthews 74 pass to Jack Lamantia (run failed)
Third quarter
N: Mike Oralls 3 run (Stewart kick)
Fourth quarter
N: Oralls 3 run (Stewart kick)
Overtime
N: Stewart 19 field goal.
Team Summary
N SV
First downs 12 13
Rushes-yds 43-168 51-247
Passing yds 60 102
Comp-att-int 6-10-1 2-6-1
Punts-avg 5-34.8 3-33.7
Fumbles-lost 1-0 2-0
Penalties-yds 3-30 6-60
Individual Statistics
Rushing: (SV) Byron Jackson, 18-95; Lain Zembek, 16-71; Dave Matthews, 14-67; Jake Hawley, 1-2; Zachery Knewasser, 1-1; Kyle Novobilski, 1-1. (N) Mike Oralls, 25-104; Cole Rifanburg, 13-58; Tristan Rifanburg, 4-7; Alec Weaver, 1-(-1).
Passing: (N) Cole Rifanburg, 6-10-1, 60 yds; (SV) Matthews, 2-6-1, 102 yds, TD.
Receiving: (N) Zan Stewart, 2-44; Tristan Rifanburg, 1-7; Cameron Edwards, 2-6; Jordan Vinal, 1-3. (SV) Jack Lamantia, 1-74; Jake Hawley, 1-28.
Someone must have forgot to tell that to Norwich Friday night.
On an evening when 18 Purple Tornado seniors were honored before the game, NHS overcame a 17-3 halftime deficit rallying to beat the Sabers, 20-17, in overtime. Zan Stewart’s 19-yard field goal sealed the win for Norwich (4-3) as the entire roster rejoiced near the endzone.
It was the second straight year Norwich has beaten Susquehanna Valley in extra minutes, and with the victory is in position to clinch its first outright division title in five years. “I’m not going to call this a program win, but this was a step in the right direction,” said Norwich second-year coach Mike Chrystie. “We’ve won four in a row, and going into next week at Oneonta, if we take care of business, who knows? We can make a run at it (in the playoffs), and anything can happen in sectionals.”
Anything can happen on the football field, but at this point of the season, the script is usually fixed. Teams with 5-1 records that beat teams by three or more touchdowns per game usually beat .500 clubs.
Susquehanna Valley, winners of four straight coming in, looked the part of favorite for most of the first half. The Sabers marched 67 yards on their opening drive – all runs – for the initial score of the game. Quarterback David Matthews kept the ball on an option to the right, and scored easily from nine yards out. Byron Jackson’s two-point conversion made it 8-0.
On the next sequence, Norwich quarterback Cole Rifanburg was intercepted on a third-down pass by Jake Hawley. Hawley and Norwich receiver Stewart went up for a jump ball, and Hawley tipped the ball to himself making a fine play to reel the ball in.
SV looked to quickly capitalize on Norwich’s lone turnover of the game. After driving to the one, a fourth-and-goal TD run by Matthews was waved off due to an “aiding the runner” penalty. A subsequent false start penalty by the Sabers forced a 29-yard field goal by Lain Zembek.
That first defensive stop was a sign Norwich wasn’t about to cave in on its last scheduled home game of the season.
Following that score, Norwich executed its first sustained drive of the game. A bruising 29-yard run by senior Mike Oralls set the tone for things to come later on, and Stewart’s 32-yard field goal with 3:01 left in the first half put Norwich on the board.
Sus Valley regained the momentum with a quick-strike touchdown. To this point in the game, the visitors had called 27 straight running plays. Play 28, the Sabers went to the air with great success. Matthews dropped back, and hit Jack Lamantia on a slant pass in the middle of the field. Lamantia was free and clear when he caught the ball, and had nothing but open field in front of him as he raced for the 74-yard touchdown.
“I think they definitely won the first half, but in the second half… .” Chrystie said.
The second half, well, Norwich made some revisions in the script. “We started to contain their blitzing, and we knew if made a good down block, we could get some yardage off tackle,” Chrystie said.
Oralls, the area’s top rusher and almost a sure bet to reach 1,000 yards this season, had just six carries in the first half. Over the next two quarters plus overtime, Oralls’ workload more than tripled. Too, quarterback Cole Rifanburg sprinkled in some timely runs and a couple of pass completions to keep the SV defense honest.
The tenor of the game changed dramatically late in the third quarter. Sus Valley took over at its 23 after forcing a Norwich punt. Two plays into the drive, Hawley’s 12-yard first-down run was wiped away due to a holding penalty. Jackson gained five yards back, but in a third-and-long, SV was forced into a passing situation.
The Sabers proved they could pass as a change of pace when the defense wasn’t expecting it. But could they pass when they had to?
For one play, no.
Matthews looked right in the flat, but his pass was intercepted by NHS senior linebacker Jacob Perrone. It was Perrone’s second interception in as many weeks, and he returned it 13 yards to the SV 15. Five plays later, Oralls scored from three yards out for Norwich’s first touchdown. “So much of high school football is mental,” Chrystie said. “Jacob’s interception was a real momentum shifter and everyone stepped up after that – the offensive line, the defense….”
After yet another Norwich defensive stop, an Oralls 12-yard first-down run kick-started a 12-play , 80-yard TD drive. Rifanburg hit Stewart on a 15-yard completion for a first down on third-and-long to extend the drive. Rifanburg added a 24-yard run, and Oralls was responsible for much of the rest. Oralls’ second three-yard score and Stewart’s successful conversion kick tied the game at 17 with 7:23 to play.
Neither team threatened until late in the game when Sus Valley moved to the Norwich 25 with 1.6 seconds left. Zembek’s 41-yard field goal attempt as time expired narrowly missed to the right.
In overtime, Sus Valley was headed in the wrong direction almost from the start
Kyle Novolbilski’s first-down run inside Norwich’s 10 was expunged from the statistics after a 15-yard chop block penalty. Situated at the 34, Nick Murphy threw Zembek for a three-yard loss, and on fourth down, Matthews’ desperation pass was knocked down at the one-yard line by Norwich senior Tristan Rifanburg.
From the moment Norwich took over at the 20, Oralls was the go-to back. Five straight runs took the NHS back to the two yard line, and on fourth down, Stewart calmly struck his 19-yard field goal through the center of the uprights.
“I thought I was going to get into the endzone on that last run,” Oralls said, who scored the winning TD in overtime in last year’s 19-13 at SV. “But I had a lot of confidence in Zan.”
Oralls had his fifth 100-yard rushing performance of the season running for 104 hard-fought yards on 25 carries. Cole Rifanburg had 58 yards rushing and 60 yards passing on 6-of-10 attempts.
The victory for Norwich was its first this season against a team with a winning record, and it is now just another win away from hosting a Class B playoff game. “On paper, I don’t think a lot of people gave our program a lot of credit going into this game,” Chrystie said. “We knew if we stayed the course, we would find success. And we did.”
Norwich closes its regular season Friday at Oneonta.
Score by quarters OT
SVall 8 9 0 0 0--17
Nor. 0 3 7 7 3--20
Scoring Summary
First quarter
SV: Dave Matthews 9 run (Byron Jackson run)
Second quarter
SV: Lain Zembek 29 field goal
N: Zan Stewart 32 field goal
SV: Dave Matthews 74 pass to Jack Lamantia (run failed)
Third quarter
N: Mike Oralls 3 run (Stewart kick)
Fourth quarter
N: Oralls 3 run (Stewart kick)
Overtime
N: Stewart 19 field goal.
Team Summary
N SV
First downs 12 13
Rushes-yds 43-168 51-247
Passing yds 60 102
Comp-att-int 6-10-1 2-6-1
Punts-avg 5-34.8 3-33.7
Fumbles-lost 1-0 2-0
Penalties-yds 3-30 6-60
Individual Statistics
Rushing: (SV) Byron Jackson, 18-95; Lain Zembek, 16-71; Dave Matthews, 14-67; Jake Hawley, 1-2; Zachery Knewasser, 1-1; Kyle Novobilski, 1-1. (N) Mike Oralls, 25-104; Cole Rifanburg, 13-58; Tristan Rifanburg, 4-7; Alec Weaver, 1-(-1).
Passing: (N) Cole Rifanburg, 6-10-1, 60 yds; (SV) Matthews, 2-6-1, 102 yds, TD.
Receiving: (N) Zan Stewart, 2-44; Tristan Rifanburg, 1-7; Cameron Edwards, 2-6; Jordan Vinal, 1-3. (SV) Jack Lamantia, 1-74; Jake Hawley, 1-28.
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