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CRUNCH: Grand Island drops close decision to Sweet Home
By Nate Beutel
GRAND ISLAND — The gridiron rivalry between Grand Island and
Sweet Home is synonymous with hard-hitting slugfests that go down to the wire.
Saturday’s CRUNCH Game of the Week between the top two teams in Class A North
was no exception.
The host Vikings had the ball deep in Sweet Home territory three times in the
second half, but couldn’t punch it in as they dropped a narrow 20-18 decision
to the host Panthers at a soggy Masters Field.
“When it’s Sweet Home-Grand Island, it’s anybody’s ballgame,” veteran
Panthers coach John Faller said. “It went back and forth the whole way, but I
guess we made just enough plays when we needed to.”
The Panthers started the game with a bang, going 70 yards on 12 plays for a
quick 7-0 lead after quarterback Casey Kacz found Noah Mwachukwu for a 27-yard
TD strike. They quickly tacked on a second score when Deshanrao Morris busted 10
yards up the middle to the end zone. Mikal Coleman’s blocked punt — the
first of a number of special teams errors by GI — set up the score.
GI would respond, though, as it took advantage of a short kickoff and scored
just before the end of the opening quarter. One play after hitting Lance
Robinson for a 28-yard strike, Vikings quarterback Joe Oliverio found his go-to
receiver, Alex Neutz, for a 19-yard TD hook-up.
Then midway through the second period, GI fullback Paul Chiaravalle finished off
an 11-play drive in style with a bruising 1-yard TD run. For the second
consecutive score, though, the extra point failed, allowing Sweet Home to retain
the lead, 13-12.
The Panthers’ lead would balloon to eight when Coleman bounced a dive around
the right edge for a 24-yard TD midway through the second quarter. The play was
set up by a 62-yard kickoff return from Will Reese.
But just over a minute later, the Vikings would respond with a 62-yard double
pass for a TD. Oliverio threw the ball to back-up quarterback Joel Klock, who
then tossed a bomb downfield to a wide open Matt Krupczyk.
“We had worked on that play a bit in the past and Joel made a great throw,”
GI coach Dean Santorio said.
The Vikings would again miss their extra point, this time dropping a potential
two-point conversion pass.
After forcing a punt from the Panthers, GI drove down the field with the final
few seconds of the first half ticking off the clock. With only a second left,
Oliverio (14-of-27, 172 yards, TD) threw a desperation heave to Neutz (seven
catches, 115 yards, TD), who drew a pass interference call. That allowed GI an
untimed down before halftime, which it used to miss a 28-yard field goal.
“Special teams, by far, were the biggest reason we lost,” Santorio said.
The mistakes would only compound in the second half. Late in the third period,
GI running back Eddie Weiser (17 carries, 109 yards) fumbled inside the Sweet
Home 20-yard line. On the Vikings’ next possession, tailback Andy Lalonde put
the ball on the ground after busting a 33-yard run the play before.
“Those two fumbles absolutely killed us,” Santorio said.
The final straw took place when Oliverio was sacked by Morris on a fourth-down
play inside the Panthers’ 20-yard line with just over three minutes left.
“We let one get away,” Santorio said. “We’d love to have another
opportunity to play them (in the playoffs).”