Verona spoils Middleton's party
All of the arrangements were in place for one heck of a party.
The first two phases of the Borden Athletic Complex had been completed and were on display for the entire community to see.
Middleton welcomed its arch-rival to town. And 4,000 fans turned out for the bash.
Then Verona spoiled the festivities.
The visiting Wildcats came to Middleton last Friday for the unveiling of the Cardinals’ new and improved stadium and made sure no one from MHS would be celebrating. Verona raced to a 21-0 lead, held off a late Middleton charge and stunned the host Cardinals, 28-21.
“It’s really disappointing,” senior linebacker Sam Pilof said.
Verona, chasing a second straight Big Eight Conference title, improved to 2-0 in the league and 3-1 overall. Middleton, which entered the night ranked No. 3 in the latest Wissports.net Division 1 poll, fell to 1-1, 3-1.
“We just dug ourselves a little bit too big of a hole,” Middleton co-interim head coach Tim Simon said. “You’ve got to tip your hat to some of the plays they made, but it’s Week 4. All of our goals are still in place.
“We’ve just got to take care of our business and get our guys aligned. We have zero time to feel sorry ourselves, because any time you’re feeling sorry for yourself you’re just wasting time.”
Verona raced to a 21-0 lead midway through the second quarter and held a 28-7 advantage late in the first half before the Cardinals mounted a charge.
Middleton closed within 28-21 with 4 minutes left and was driving for the potential tying score. On third-and-goal, though, from the Verona 2-yard line, Middleton quarterback Gabe Passini fumbled the snap. When Passini went into the pile to recover the loose ball, his helmet popped off — making him ineligible for the next play.
“We were doing a wedge play, trying to get it in with two yards to go, which is usually successful,” said Passini, who threw three touchdowns and was terrific throughout. “But I fumbled the snap, got down in the pile and had to come out.”
Instead of putting another quarterback into the game, Middleton went with running back Bryce Falk under center and had him run a quarterback sneak. Verona stuffed Falk at the 1-yard line, though, and Middleton’s hopes of a comeback died.
“Well, we were going to run the quarterback sneak,” Simon said. “And we wanted either Gabe or Bryce to run it.”
Passini said it was tough watching from the sideline.
“That’s usually my play,” Passini said. “I was stressing out because Bryce has never taken a snap under center. I love him taking the ball, but in that moment, in that situation, it was tough to watch.”
The first 18 minutes were tough to watch for Cardinal Nation as Verona sprinted to a 21-0 lead and quieted the standing-room-only crowd.
Verona left-handed quarterback Elijah Lagomasino was sensational early, throwing for 156 yards and three touchdowns in the first half alone.
On just the second play from scrimmage, wideout Mike Valitchka got loose down the right sideline and Lagomasino delivered a strike for a 7-0 Verona lead. The Wildcats extended their lead to 13-0 late in the first quarter when Lagomasino and Valitchka hooked up for a 6-yard TD that capped an 11-play, 77-yard drive.
“That quarterback put some balls in some places where the DBs were right on them,” Simon said. “Their quarterback and receivers made some plays that you don't see every Friday night.
“There’s skill there. Maybe there’s a little bit of luck. No disrespect, but there were a couple of times we came off as a defense and you’ve just got to tip your hat to them.”
Verona found the endzone for a third straight time when running back Chase Bredesen broke two tackles and plowed in from two yards out midway through the second quarter. A 46-yard completion from Lagomasino to Valitchka set up the score, and Lagomasino’s two-point conversion run made it 21-0.
“Mostly it was mental breakdowns,” Pilof said. “But I think we rallied really well.”
They sure did.
After the Cardinals’ first three drives went nowhere, they finally changed momentum when Trey Suttle had a strip sack and Quone Burks recovered at the Verona 44. From there, it took the Cardinals just two plays to close within 21-7.
First, Passini scrambled for 17 yards to the Wildcats’ 27. Then with a defensive lineman in his face, Passini lobbed a pass just over a Verona defender and into the waiting hands of Isaiah Oliver, who made a nifty catch-and-run for a 27-yard TD.
“Gabe made some amazing plays,” Simon said.
Verona countered with a 26-yard TD strike from Lagomasino to Wesley Briquelet with just 1:32 left in the half to make it 28-7. But Passini and senior wideout Elijah Coleman did much of the heavy lifting on a 67-yard TD drive that pulled Middleton within 28-14 just 32 seconds before halftime.
First, Coleman took a 50-50 ball away from Verona star defensive back Tre Poteat for a 41-yard gain that gave Middleton the ball at the Wildcats’ 26. Then on third-and-9 from the Verona 11, Passini rolled left, encountered trouble and came back to the right.
Passini planted, threw back to the left corner of the endzone, where Coleman had worked free and hauled in an 11-yard TD that helped the Cardinals get back into the game just before halftime.
“I like the backyard football where you can get out and make the throws on the run,” Passini said. “And my receivers know that’s the time to break open and play some backyard football.”
Middleton closed within 28-21 with 30 seconds left in the third quarter when Passini hit Damien Hansbro for an 11-yard TD.
The Cardinals faced a fourth-and-9 from the Verona 11 and Passini was forced out of the pocket to his right. Hansbro, who began the play lined up wide right, worked across the field and somehow Passini saw him break free just as the Cardinals’ quarterback was being taken to the ground.
“Our third and fourth down conversions pretty much kept us in the game,” Passini said. “We got so close. We had confidence because we’re a grinding football team and we’re going to get it done when it matters.”
It appeared that just might be the case.
Middleton’s defense stiffened and held Verona scoreless in the second half. In fact, the Wildcats had just one first down and 45 total yards after intermission.
“I felt we had some momentum in the second half,” Simon said. “We tightened up on defense and we mixed up our pressure a little bit.”
Middleton also appeared to have an angel on its collective shoulder as it was driving for a potential tying score late.
On fourth-and-5 from Verona’s 41, Passini again escaped heavy pressure and rolled right. Just before he was hit, Passini left his feet, threw a jump ball for Drew Cooney, and the junior tight end leapt high into the air to haul in a 16-yard reception.
Four plays later, Passini and Oliver connected for four yards on a fourth-and-four giving Middleton the ball at Verona’s 15.
One more first down gave the Cardinals the ball at Verona’s 4. But a first down false start penalty and Passini losing his helmet eventually killed the drive.
“The thing for our kids to understand is now we find out if we’re a mentally tough team,” Simon said. “Anybody can be mentally tough when you’re winning by a couple touchdowns. So we’ve got to hang together.”
Pilof said that won’t be an issue.
“The season’s far from over,” Pilof said. “I’ve got a lot of faith in our squad and our brothers. It’s Week 4. We’ve got plenty of time.”
Sept. 8
Verona 28, Middleton 21
Verona ............ 13 15 0 0 — 28
Middleton ............ 0 14 7 0 — 21
V — Mike Valitchka, 64, pass from Elijah Lagomasino (Yamin Brown kick)
V — Valitchka, 6, pass from Lagomasino (Yamin Brown kick)
V — Chase Bredeson, 2, run (Brown kick)
Mid — Isaiah Oliver, 27 pass from Gabe Passini (Drew Cooney kick)
V — Wesley Briquelet, 26, pass from Lagomasino (Lagomasino run)
Mid — Elijah Coleman, 11, pass from Passini (Cooney kick)
Mid — Damien Hansbro 11, pass from Passini (Cooney kick)
TEAM STATS
First downs: Mid 15, V 11. Rushes-Attempts: Mid 34-167, V 33-116. Passing yards: Mid 227, V 219. Passing (comp-att-int): Mid 8-15-1, V 9-16-0. Penalties-Yards: Mid 6-50, V 6-50. Fumbles-Lost: Mid 0-0, MLF 1-1.
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: Mid, Gabe Passini 16-99, Bryce Falk 10-50; V, Chase Bredeson 26-105.
Passing (Comp-Att-Yds-TD-INT): Mid, Gabe Passini 8-15-227-3-1; V, Elijah Lagomasino 9-16-219-3-0.
Receiving: Mid, Troy Teff 3-47, Isaiah Oliver 3-46, Bryce Falk 3-34, Elijah Coleman 2-55, Drew Cooney 2-37, Damien Hansbro 1-11; V, Mike Valitchka 5-174, Wesley Briquelet 3-35, Aidyn Chatman 1-10.
