Jefferson Wins In Last Minute

Augusta, NJ – By ADAM REGAN
aregan@njherald.com

AUGUSTA — Following a late fourth-quarter fumble, Jefferson quarterback Dominick Macaluso was certain his Falcons wouldn't get another shot at the end zone.

Then again, he'd been wrong before.

The senior signal-caller changed his tune as soon as he watched the Falcon defense force a three-and-out with less than two minutes left in a 20-19 win over Vernon on Thursday.

Then came the guarantee.

"I knew we were going to score as soon as we got the ball back," Macaluso said.

His instincts were batting .500 for the night after he hit a wide-open Travis Smith for a 43-yard touchdown pass with 25 seconds remaining to give Jefferson its first win over the Group IV-Vikings in five years.

Macaluso was caught off guard as he saw a lone gold-and-white, No. 83 jersey streaking down the field

What he wasn't surprised at was the amount of time he had to locate Smith.

"Our offensive line was getting it done all night long," Macaluso said. "They deserve a lot of credit."

The line's efforts went unnoticed, however, until after halftime when the Falcons dug out of a 13-0 hole.

A fake punt which set up a John Kaschak score and Smith's first receiving touchdown of the game depicted a whole new team.

Jefferson head coach Joe Mattessich may have had a bit to do with that.

His halftime speech not only motivated his players, but challenged them on another level.

"Let's just say that a lot of things were said about their manhood," said Mattessich, who was on the losing end of a one-point game against Vernon last season. "And they responded as they should have."

After hurling eight straight incompletions, Macaluso settled down and finished with six straight completions for 80 yards.

He led the Falcons to the their first lead of the game on a 60-yard drive, culminating with Smith's 20-yard touchdown reception with nine minutes left in the contest.

"This win shows just how mature we are," Macaluso said. "We know now that we can battle back from anything."

The feeling of redemption was short-lived, however, when Vernon quarterback Travis Connelly threw a 44-yard fade route to Pete Wise on the ensuing possession, putting the Vikings ahead 19-14.

Wise caught six passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns, including a 59-yard bomb on a fullback option pass from Mark Glander on the first play of the game.