* 7-Under * 8-Under * 9-Under * 10-Under * 11-Under * 13-Under *
Wow! What a day! Three of the first four games were decided on
the final play from scrimmage. It was chock full of big plays!
It was a super-sized stress sandwich, and that doesn't include
the endless SNAFUs encountered at the scorer's table. AWESOME!
In the end, Brookline emerged four-and-one for the series. But
Kudos to the Carlynton Cougars, who kept us on the edge of our
seats for nine hours. These WERE some exciting football games.
October 3, 2009 @ McGibbeny Field
8-UNDER JV GAME (exhibition game)
BROOKLINE 16 - Carlynton 6
Scoring Summary:
Brenton Morefield 25 run (Brenton Morefield run)
Dominic Leonard 35 pass from Nathan Ault (Nathan Ault run)
Interception: Nick Roell
NOTES: Our youngest Knights battled it out with Carlynton's
little Cougars for fifty minutes in this JV contest. Brookline
quarterback Nathan Ault had a fine game, leading the Knights
to a 16-6 victory.
Brookline's Brenton Morefield scored first on a twenty-five
yard scamper, then followed up with a good conversion burst.
The Cougars answered with six points of their own when they
scooped up a fumble and returned it thirty-two yards.
Another promising Knight drive featured a seventeen yard pass
from Ault to Seth Derrick. The drive stalled in the red zone.
At the midpoint of the game, Brookline held an 8-6 edge.
In the second half, Ault connected with Dominic Leonard on a
swing pass that Leonard extended into a thirty-five touchdown
reception. Ault added the two-point conversion run to increase
the Knight lead to 16-6.
This was a REAL good game for our littlest Knights. Way to go!
WEEK #6 - October 3, 2009 @ McGibbeny Field
8-UNDER
Carlynton 6 - BROOKLINE 0
Fumble Recovery: Ramon White
NOTES: In retrospect, this game seemed a bit like the Cold War
drama, Fail-Safe, starring Henry Fonda. The Soviet Union and
the United States were on equal, yet safe, terms in the atomic
age. A glitch in the system caused a nuclear catastrophy. The
final scene was a blinding light that signaled the end.
Brookline and Carlynton stood toe-to-toe and duked it out for
thirty-two minutes without any definitive result. Carlynton
threatened in the second quarter with a drive to the Brookline
ten yard line. The Knights pushed the Cougars back ten yards.
A fine stop on fourth down by Jayden Payne ended that threat.
In the third quarter, strong running by Ramon White helped the
Knights push deep into Cougar territory. A fumble near the red
zone ended that promising drive. Both teams pushed and pushed
back, until only seconds remained. The ball sat at the Knight
forty-three yard line. Carlynton was in possession.
There was time for one last play in this scoreless contest
before the Dogs of War declared stalemate and sudden death.
The Cougar quarterback took the snap and started to his left.
He cut to the right and the defenders moved to intercept. Then
the buzzer sounded and it seemed as if time stood still, for
everyone except the Cougar runner. He hit the hole and burst
forward to daylight. As he crossed the plane a blinding light
signaled the end for the Brookline Knights.
WEEK #6 - October 3, 2009 @ McGibbeny Field
9-UNDER
BROOKLINE 6 - Carlynton 0 (Overtime)
Scoring Summary:
Brent Ivory 10 run (no conversion attempt)
Fumble Recovery: Joel Wert (2), Bobby Goodnight
NOTES: This game was quite similar to the previous game, only
the blinding light signaled the end for the Carlynton Cougars,
and it had a familiar name, Brent Ivory.
Both teams slugged it out for forty minutes. The pendulum of
momentum swung both ways, but could carry neither opponent to
the endzone. Carlynton threatened in the first half, surging
forward to the Brookline nineteen yard line. The Knights dug
in and pushed them back.
In the second half, Brookline rode the legs of Darryl Daniels
to the Carlynton twenty. A fumble ended that push. The defense
ruled the turf and neither team could muster a score. Time
expired and the game headed into overtime deadlocked at 0-0.
Carlynton won the toss and began their offensive series. The
Knights forced a turnover that was pounced on by Joel Wert and
Bobby Goodnight. The Brookline offense took over and were
forced into a fourth and goal at the ten yard line.
Quarterback Brent Ivory took the snap and bootlegged to the
left. With nowhere to go, he reversed direction and took off
to the right. After traveling sideline-to-sideline and dodging
several defenders, Brent cut towards the endzone. He was met
by a pack of Cougars, but somehow managed to slice his way
into the endzone for the game-winning score.
The Brookline sideline burst into cheers, while the blinding
light that we now call Brent signaled the end for Carlynton.
WEEK #6 - October 3, 2009 @ McGibbeny Field
10-UNDER
BROOKLINE 14 - Carlynton 6
Scoring Summary:
Jake Devers 3 pass from Jacob Mellon (Demetrius Cotton run)
Christian Frazier 18 fumble recovery (conversion failed)
Fumble Recovery: Jake Devers, Christian Frazier
NOTES: The 10-year old Knights put last week's disaster behind
them with a solid performance against a determined Carlynton
Cougar team. When the final buzzer sounded, Brookline had one
for the win column with a 14-6 Triumph of the Tens.
Running back Aaron Owens let everyone know that the Knights
came to play with a couple nice carries on Brookline's first
possession. Although that initial drive ended short of the
goal, it set the tone. The second drive would hit paydirt.
Quarterback Jacob Mellon took charge with runs of twenty-three
and thirteen yards, moving the ball forward to the seven yard
line. Although Mellon fumbled on his second carry, the sure
hands of Jake Devers snatched up the loose ball at the Cougar
three. From there, Mellon connected with Devers for a short
but sweet touchdown reception. A good conversion run by
Demetrius Cotton put the Knights on top, 8-0.
On the Cougars next possession, an errant lateral found it's
way into the hands of Christian Frazier, who gladly returned
the gift eighteen yards for the Knights second score. The
scoreboard at halftime read: Brookline 14 - Carlynton 0.
The Cougars struck midway through the final period. A 35-yard
punt return gave Carlynton great field position at the Knights
twenty-six yard line. From there, the cats clawed their way to
the goal. The drive ended with a one-yard plunge, narrowing
the Brookline lead to eight points. But, eight was enough to
be the final margin of victory for the Green and Black.
<See more
photos from the 10-Under Carlynton game>
WEEK #6 - October 3, 2009 @ McGibbeny Field
11-UNDER
BROOKLINE 34 - Carlynton 32 (Overtime)
Scoring Summary:
Dylan DiRenna 8 run (conversion failed)
Taylor Thornton 8 run (conversion failed)
Taylor Thornton 17 pass from Nick Manuel (Nick Manuel run)
Taylor Thornton 12 run (conversion failed)
Taylor Thornton 10 run (Taylor Thornton run)
Interception: Taylor Thornton
NOTES: The Brookline Knights 11-year olds, under the watchful
eye of Coach Joe Nicholas, are on a roll. They are now 4-1 and
own a string of three consecutive wins. In his sixteen years
with the program, the veteran coach can rattle off a long list
of running backs with a talent for finding the endzone. After
Taylor Thornton's four touchdown payday in the Knights 34-32
overtime judgement against Carlynton, Coach Joe may have found
the next name for his list of trusty thoroughbreds.
The game itself was a see-saw struggle, a seemingly endless
series of ups and downs that ended in a 26-26 tie.
The Brookline offense started strong, surging forward to the
Cougar seventeen yard line before fumbling the ball away. On
the Knight's second possession, quarterback Nick Manuel threw
a screen pass to Dylan DiRenna that ended sixty-six yards away
at the Carlynton eight yard line. From there, DiRenna carried
the ball the remaining yards for the game's first score.
The Knights kept pounding away. A forty-nine yard DiRenna run
positioned the Knights deep in Cougar territory once again. An
interception thwarted that opportunity. The fourth possession
saw strong running by Thornton, and a forty-one yard pass play
from Manuel to Loren Wicks that put Brookline back in the red
zone. This time Thornton crossed the plane with an eight yard
touchdown run to increase the Knight lead to 12-0.
Carlynton finally got their offense untangled before the end
of the first half. A thirty-nine yard scoring toss with eight
seconds remaining closed the gap to 12-6. A good stop by Nick
Manuel on the conversion attempt preceded the halftime break.
The second half was a wild and wooly affair. Carlynton struck
first. A forty-seven yard touchdown run evened the tally at
12-12. A seventeen yard scoring toss from Manuel to Thornton,
followed by Manuel's good conversion run, put Brookline back
on top, 20-12.
The Cougars came right back with a fifty yard touchdown pass.
The Knights countered with a twelve yard run by Thornton. The
score now read 26-18, Brookline. With a minute and a half to
go, Carlynton scored once more on a fifty yard run. The good
conversion tied the game at 26-26.
Brookline's offense kept right on shooting from the hip.
Manuel connected with Thornton and Wicks on completions of
twelve and twenty-two yards, pushing to the Cougar twenty
before an interception halted the rush. It wasn't over yet!
With only seconds remaining, a chill came over the Brookline
crowd as Carlynton hauled off with a thirty-seven yard pass
and found themselves near the endzone with one play to go.
The Cougars threw a pass towards the goal, which Thornton
intercepted as the final buzzer sounded. Take a breath.
Overtime! Take another breath.
Carlynton won the toss and scored on their first play, a ten
yard pass. The Cougar conversion attempt was met by a host of
Knights and fell short of the goal. Carlynton had their first
lead of the game, 32-26. Brookline had four downs remaining
to come back and even the score. They needed only one.
On Brookline's first play, Thornton took the handoff and did
what he does best. He found the endzone. The score was now
tied at 32-32. The Knights lined up for the conversion.
Who else? Old reliable. Handoff to Thornton. Score! Victory!
WEEK #6 - October 3, 2009 @ McGibbeny Field
13-UNDER
BROOKLINE 40 - Carlynton 0
Scoring Summary:
Michael Ignasky 65 kickoff return (kick failed)
Michael Ignasky 6 run (conversion failed)
Dominick DelGreco 3 run (kick failed)
Jerrad Tuite 40 punt return (Michael Roper run)
Dominick DelGreco 31 pass from Jerrad Tuite
(conversion failed)
Adam Tajuddin 11 run (Khalil Sanders run)
Fumble Recovery: Dominick DelGreco, Adam Ottaviano
NOTES: It was slaughter, plain and simple. By halftime the
score was 40-0. The Knights could do no wrong. Whether it be
running the ball, passing, defending or playing special teams,
this Brookline team is simply awesome. They are just grinding
their way through the opposition with uncanny ease and an
unquenchable thirst for destruction.
We are running out of words to accurately describe the force
that is wrapped up in this Green and Black Gridiron Machine.
Today we turn to the word "Juggernaut."
Merriam-Webster defines a Juggernaut as:
- a massive inexorable force, campaign, movement, or object
that crushes whatever is in its path.
That sounds about right.
If anyone is wondering what a gridiron juggernaut looks like,
just stop by McGibbeny Field next Saturday and witness the
wrath of Coach Donnie's Green Machine. These Templar Knights
are so dangerous that they should be required to attach an
FDA approved warning label to their helmets, just to be on
the safe side.
2009 Knights News - Previous Week's Game Summaries
Week#5 <> Week#4 <> Week#3 <> Week#2 <> Week#1
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