Football: Pelham got everything it came to Mahopac for
MAHOPAC – After watching his team work over the first three opponents on the schedule, Pelham coach Artie Viggiano was hoping for a little drama this week.
How’s a double-overtime thriller work?
The adrenaline was pumping as Viggiano walked off the field at Mahopac, knowing his team was exponentially better for having survived the stress of a 40-34 comeback win.
“I really believe this is exactly what we needed,” he said. “We needed a gut punch. We needed to find out exactly what this group is made of. I think we proved ourselves here tonight because Mahopac is a hell of a football team that came out with a great plan and hit us hard.
“Our kids needed to dig deep to get this one.”
After twice being stopped by the Indians’ stubborn goal-line unit, Pelham quarterback Callum Reen got just enough push on fourth-and-goal from the 1 to secure the win.
Kicking a short field goal was an option.
“No way,” Reen said. “I trust my line. Those guys were basically, ‘We’re pushing right through these guys.’ And we got it done.”
Pelham missed a field goal in the final minutes of regulation.
The Pelicans had the first possession in overtime and Reen wiggled free on fourth down, going into the end zone from the 12. Chris Franchini added the point after. D.J. DeMatteo connected with Joey Koch for a touchdown on the first play of the series from the 20. Joey Grassia kicked the extra point.
After switching ends, Mahopac lost yardage on its second overtime possession before DeMatteo threw a fourth-down interception.
“We just had to push harder at certain points in the game,” Nick Massareglia said. “We had it at the beginning, lost it and had to get the momentum back.”
What it means
The mood was somber at the intermission after Mahopac rattled off 20 unanswered points, but confidence grew when Pelham controlled the ball and the clock in the second half. With teams like John Jay-Cross River, Poly Prep, Somers and Eastchester up next, that’s a positive development.
Player of the game
Reen got into the end zone three times after the intermission. He also threw for a pair of touchdowns in the first half.
By the numbers
Pelham (4-0, 3-0): Teddy Johnson opened the scoring when he caught a screen pass and quickly covered 40 yards. … Massareglia caught a 27-yard TD pass in the second quarter, then capped a 14-play drive in the third quarter with a 12-yard TD run . ... Reen pushed in from 2 yards out and threw for the conversion, making it a 27-20 lead for the Pelicans with 9:31 to to. ... Massareglia had 133 yards on 13 carries and Johnson had 115 yards on 25 carries.
Mahopac (1-2, 0-2): DeMatteo hit Joey Koch in stride with a swing pass that went 83 yards for a score to start the Indians rally. ... Danny Koch knotted the score 13-13 when he went 10 yards into the end zone. … It was a 20-13 lead for Mahopac at the half after DeMatteo hit Nate Mascoll for a 36-yard TD. … Joey Koch returned a kick 83 yards after the Pelicans went up 27-20 with 9:16 to play. ... DeMatteo threw for 216 yards and three TDs.
They said it
“We thought about possibly kicking there … well, not really, not with our guys,” Viggiano said of the final play of the game. “In that situation, we were jamming the ball in. I can’t say enough about the way our kids handled themselves.”
“It’s definitely keeping us where we should be,” Massareglia said of the win. “Knowing we have to take every team seriously and keep going hard every week.”
“We’re both,” Reen said in response to a question about whether Pelham was a quick-strike or a grind-it-out unit offensively. “Whatever we need, whatever gets the win that’s what we’ll do. We’ve got dogs everywhere.”
Up next
Mahopac is back home next Friday at 7 p.m., dealing with Class A favorite Somers. Pelham is back home next Friday at 7 p.m., taking on John Jay-Cross River.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Pelham improves to 4-0 after double-overtime win at Mahopac
