NOTRE DAME JUGGLERS 14 听- 听17 TERRY FOX RAVENS
BC PLACE --- At the outset of the varsity football season, Notre Dame quarterback Steven Moretto to see his Jugglers through to the Subway Bowl and win the school鈥檚 first B.C. championship in nearly a quarter century. Carrying the team on his shoulders with the ball often in his capable hands, he made good on the first promise, but then fumbled on the second.
Up against the determined Terry Fox Ravens at BC Place on Dec. 3, Moretto met his match in the stand-out multi-position player Jeremie Kankolongo. Talent clings to these two teenagers like lint and there鈥檚 no brushing it off, but Saturday night under the dome, they exchanged crucial errors that changed the course of the game through four quarters and overtime.
鈥淚 was shaking the whole game, to be honest with you. In the overtime, I felt like I couldn鈥檛 breathe,鈥� said Moretto. 鈥淎t the end of the day, they executed better than we did and that鈥檚 what it comes down to.鈥�
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"If you take a look at what both teams did," said Jugglers head coach Rich Scott, "we did a hell of a job on Kankolongo, and they did a hell of a job on Moretto. Those two guys just kept banging away. They are going to be sore tomorrow. It came down the a fumble and a kick and that鈥檚 the provincial championship. It was exciting and disappointing all at the same time".
The game had all the makings of a classic, and the drama started early. Starting with a blocked punt, the Jugglers turned defensive pressure into a touchdown drive. Brenden Woodman prevented Terry Fox from kicking the ball away when broke from the punter's right and threw his body on the ball, putting Notre Dame on the Raven鈥檚 35 yard line. Moretto picked up rushing yards before Brice Pulmares ran for an 18-yard touchdown to give the Jugglers 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
On their next drive, the Jugglers could only watch as a worst-case-scenario played out before their eyes. Going for it on fourth-and-11, Moretto ripped off a hard throw that was tipped behind the line of scrimmage only to tumbled through the air into the arms of Kankolongo. The six-foot senior ran the ball down the right flank for a 71-yard pick-six. Tie game.
The Ravens later took the lead in the second quarter as running back Matthew Shuen scored from three yards out.
The Jugglers started their next drive from their own 25. Moretto ran for a first down and then faked the hand-off and ran for another 11. From the 43 yard line, the quarterback found a seam and raced down the sideline, finally diving for the end zone but coming one yard short. On the next play, he walked it in, banging through the linesmen like a bumper car. Tie game.
There was no scoring in the second half but there was no taking your eyes off this unforgettable Subway Bowl either.
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Crossing the ball between hands near the 50-yard line, a running Moretto fumbled at the start of the fourth quarter and, as with the intercepted pass, the ball fell to Kankolongo who recovered and then marched the Ravens to blinking distance of the end zone. Notre Dame stopped them with an outstanding goal-line stand. Staring down fourth-and-one from the third yard line, Kankolongo couldn鈥檛 punch through for a first down or a touchdown. After the referees brought out the chains to be sure, Dylan Rachel was credited with the clutch tackle. Game still tied.
With less than a minute in the final frame, the Ravens looked to make a big play from their own 20, but it was the Jugglers who rose to the occasion. Pauljeet Dhami stripped the ball from Kankolongo, who had broken into a run, and Rachel smothered the ball on Raven's 30. With 34 second left in the championship, Notre Dame brought out the kicking team for a shot at the win. The elated Jugglers fans sat heavily in their seats as Lucus Battistin came just short on the 36-yard attempt. Tie game.
In overtime, Notre Dame won the toss and started out from their own 10-yard line. On the opening play, Moretto took the ball into the gut of the Ravens鈥� defence and they ate it right up. The ball popped loose in the hands of a Terry Fox linesman.
鈥淚 saw the ball going and, honestly, I felt like every breath left my body,鈥� said Moretto.
The Jugglers defence held up the Ravens and pushed them back a yard over three attempts. A famous football name then stepped up to kick the championship field goal at BC Place. Devin Passaglia, his second cousin sitting in the stands with fans from his Notre Dame alma mater, put the ball through the uprights from 29 yards out, winning the Subway Bowl for the Terry Fox Ravens. Game over.
"We knew it would be hard, we knew it would be close," said Jugglers head coach Rich Scott. "It will take a whilte to come to grips with it."
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