Woodland’s Sean McAllen (4) hits the hole Nov. 7 versus Ansonia in Beacon Falls. McAllen ran for 207 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries for the Hawks, who fell to Ansonia 30-28. –ELIO GUGLIOTTI
BEACON FALLS — Facing fourth down and a four-point deficit with just 19 seconds left, Ansonia lined up at the Hawks’ 7-yard line seeking to put the exclamation point on an improbable comeback.
The roar from the home crowd echoed through the night as the Woodland defense looked to put its own exclamation point on a monumental upset.
Ansonia’s Jai’Quan McKnight silenced the crowd.
McKnight dropped back and hit Tyler Bailey, who muscled his way into the end zone for the score. Bailey’s touchdown catch — his second in 77 seconds — erased a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit and gave the Chargers a 30-28 lead with 11 seconds left.
The Hawks would get one final shot. But, there would be no Boise State-esque hook and ladder play for Woodland. The clock struck zero on Woodland’s upset bid and the Chargers escaped Beacon Falls Nov. 7 with the 30-28 win.
“I’m a guy who believes a loss is a loss, but I believe that you can be defeated by a loss or you can learn from it. I think what these kids see is something that the coaches have seen in these kids all along, is the type of player that they can be and the athlete they can be and the competitor they can be, that’s what we’re going to take away from this loss,” Woodland coach Tim Phipps said.
With 2:38 left in the game Woodland (3-5) was on the verge of stunning the Chargers. Sean McAllen scored a 13-yard touchdown run and Lauren Charette added the extra point to extend Woodland’s lead to 28-16.
Ansonia (8-1) took over on its own 41 with no timeouts and 2:31 to go. On the first play of the drive a screen pass fell harmlessly incomplete, but stopped the clock.
The Chargers then began to pick up chunks of yards on the Woodland defense, which had held Ansonia in check for much of the game. The Chargers drove down the field to set up a first-and-goal from the Hawks’ 7-yard line with 1:50 left.
The Woodland defense clamped down and forced fourth down from the 8, but McKnight found Bailey in the flat for the touchdown. McKnight added the two-point conversion to make it 28-24 with 1:18 left on the clock.
Witold Gul’s ensuing onside kick took a favorable bounce for Ansonia and the Chargers recovered the kick at the Hawks’ 47. McKnight picked up 23 yards with his legs to start the drive and then hit Bailey for an 11-yard grab to set Ansonia up to dash the Hawks’ hopes.
“I respect the effort and the heart that they fought with,” Phipps said of his team. “It kills me, but it’s also a lesson in life that you can put a lot into something, you can put your heart and soul and give up so much and not come away with what you want. But, that’s the way life works.”
Though the final score doesn’t show it, the Hawks imposed their will on Ansonia for nearly the full 48 minutes. Woodland, which only attempted one pass prior to the final seconds, ran over the Chargers to the tune of 289 yards on the ground. McAllen led the way with 207 yards on 30 carries.
“A lot of people believed in Sean and knew what he can do and Sean just fully believed in himself tonight,” Phipps said.
In the locker room prior to game, Phipps said, McAllen acknowledged what he needed to do, told the team what he was going to do and followed through with it on the field.
“I can’t be more proud of that young man for what he’s played through,” Phipps said.
The Hawks put Ansonia on notice early on that they would not be a pushover.
Quarterback Mike Kenney, who ran for 71 yards on 14 carries, capped the opening drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. Charette, who went 4-for-4 on the night with extra points, made the score 7-0 Woodland with 5:27 left in the first.
The Hawks forced a three-and-out on Ansonia’s first possession after Jake Laliberte sacked McKnight for 13-yard loss on third down.
The Hawks went right back to the ground game. This time it was McAllen who broke the goal line from 28 yards out for the first of his three touchdowns. With 2:12 left in the first quarter the Hawks led 14-0.
The Chargers answered back in the second quarter.
Tajik Bagley scored from a yard out and Bailey added the conversion to cut Woodland’s lead to 14-8 at the 10:27 mark in the second. After Ansonia forced its own three-an-out, Bagley rushed for a 9-yard touchdown and Bailey added the conversion to give the Chargers a 16-14 lead with 6:10 before the half.
The Chargers’ lead wouldn’t last long. Twenty-one seconds later McAllen broke loose for a 51-yard touchdown.
The Hawks thwarted a Chargers’ scoring opportunity as the half ended and Woodland held a 21-16 advantage at halftime.
The Hawks clung to the 21-16 through the third quarter. Early in the fourth Ansonia was poised to take the lead back until McAllen picked off McKnight at the Woodland 2 with 9:54 to go and returned it to Ansonia’s 24. Woodland was unable to take advantage of the turnover after being stuffed on fourth-and inches at the 3-yard line.
The Hawks defense forced another Ansonia punt and McAllen put the Hawks up 12 on the ensuing possession. But, the lead quickly evaporated in the cold night air as the improbable upset turned into an improbable comeback.
“Saturday morning the sun’s going to come up,” Phipps said. “The Hawks are going to come out and hunt.”
The Hawks will look to bounce back when they host Holy Cross (6-3) Friday at 6:30 p.m.
