Wallington brings home a championship

The Game At A Glance: Wallington jumped off to a 20-0 halftime lead, featuring an outstanding opening drive, only to fight off a proud and resilient Mountain Lakes team to win their first state championship since 1990, 23-21. The winning points came on a 21 yard field goal in the fourth quarter from Marcin Koc that bounced off the left upright. The win snapped a 35 game winning streak by Mountain Lakes.

First Half Highlights: Wallington opened the game on an eleven play drive, scoring when Criss Sullivan took a shovel pass from Charlie Vellis and went 8 yards down the left sideline to make it 7-0. The Panthers picked up three first downs, as Sullivan carried five times and a key play was when Vellis found Marcin Koc for 15 yards and a first down. After exchanging punts, Mountain Lakes went twelve plays, making it to the 18. However, they turned it over on downs when they couldn't convert two plays when they had third and four from the 19.

Wallington took over on downs early in the second quarter from their 18 and scored when Sullivan scored from three yards out from the Wildcat. The extra point failed and it was 13-0 with seven minutes left in the half. A key play was when Vellis shoveled a pass to Sullivan, who went 56 yards to the 23. After forcing Mountain Lakes to a three and out, Wallington struck pay dirt again, when Vellis found Koc down the left sideline on a 59 yard score to make it 20-0 with six minutes left in the half. Mountain Lakes went thirteen plays to the 17, but turned it over on downs when a fourth down pass fell incomplete. Wallington received a scare when Vellis fumbled the shotgun snap and Mountain Lakes recovered on the 9 with three seconds left in the half, but their one play couldn't result in a score.

Second Half Highlights: Mountain Lakes opened the half with the ball and went 80 yards on thirteen plays, making it count when Robbie Rohan plunged in from one yard out to make it 20-7, with six minutes left in the quarter. After forcing a Wallington punt, the Herd went 81 yards on seven plays, as Greg Cuccinello hit Ethan Lubowitz for a three yard score, as Lubowitz made a nice grab in the end zone. It was 20-14 with a minute left in the third quarter. The key play was a Cuccinello to Lukas Marker pass for 52 yards to the 29.

Wallington answered with an eleven play drive, capped off when Koc kicked a 21 yard field goal that bounced inside off the left upright, three minutes into the fourth quarter. The key play was a Vellis to Brandon Santana pass of 29 yards to the 6. Mountain Lakes narrowed the gap to 23-21 when Cuccinello hit Marker for a 30 yard pass, as Marker made a diving catch in the right corner of the end zone, making it 23-21 with just under seven minutes left. Mountain Lakes had one more drive, but turned it over on downs with just under four minutes to go. Wallington then ran out the clock, as Sullivan carried it the last seven plays of the game.

Play Of The Game: The Vellis to Koc touchdown that gave them a three touchdown cushion and was enough for them to hold off Mountain Lakes.

Game Balls: Sullivan gained 143 yards on 28 carries and caught a key 51 yard pass on the pitch to set up a score. Koc kicked what proved to be the winning field goal and caught a 59 yard touchdown pass. Two way lineman Abo Mahmoud had a good game and wrapped up a career as a four year starter. Vellis also capped off a very good career as the Wallington quarterback, as he was 12 for 23 for 206 yards and two touchdowns.

For Mountain Lakes, two players that stood out were fullback/linebacker Robbie Rohan and wide receiver Lukas Marker.

Audibles:

Wallington head coach Barry Blauvelt - "It's a magical thing. We do what we do, we'll be fine, just don't panic. We knew Mountain Lakes was good and it was going to be a tight game. I thought it would be more 14-6 or 17-10, than 23-21. We were battle tested: the North Arlington game, the Pascack Hills game, the Saddle Brook game, the Hasbrouck Heights game. These games put us in pressure situations, all season long, so we knew how to handle ourselves. On the winning field goal, I'm thinking thank God for the upright; but on a high school field, that's good with no problem. I trust Marcin Koc with my life and I have a lot of confidence in him."

Wallington running back/defensive back Criss Sullivan - "This is amazing, it's the best. Our first drive, we wanted to go as fast as we could. We went no huddle and just ran the ball right through. I knew they were going to come back because they're a great team."

Wallington lineman Abo Mahmoud - "On our first drive, we knew we could score. It was a matter of how our defense would do. We shut them down in the first half. In the second half, they made good adjustments and they're state champs, they know what they're doing. They fought their way back into the game. I'm glad we were able to finish it. This feels amazing and it's what every high school football player dreams of. This is the reason we play football, for this moment, right here. It seems like everyone in town is here and with the boy's soccer program winning the state championship, they are our biggest fans and we're their biggest fans. They're here tonight and we took the hour and a half drive to see them win."

Wallington quarterback Charlie Vellis - "That's a good Mountain Lakes team and we knew they were going to come out tough. We hung tough and we won.

Wallington wide receiver/kicker Marcin Koc - "On the touchdown pass, I thought I was going to miss it, and it just fell into my hands, and then I just ran for my life. I was getting down on myself when I missed the extra point, but the field goal put me right back on top. I can't describe what I feel. It means a lot for the town and to us. We worked four years for this and it's amazing"

Mountain Lakes head coach Darrell Fusco - "I'll take full responsibility for this. We should have kicked a field goal and we missed some tackles. Our kids battled and give credit to Wallington and Sullivan. Sullivan made our kids miss tackles because of the player he is. Their kids made plays and they made plays when they had to. Give credit to them - they battled. When we cut it to a touchdown deficit, I thought we had them. We had the last drive, we had a penalty, and we got out of rhythm. These seniors, it was the first time they lost a game. It was a great high school football game and I'm disappointed for them. I'm sad as a head coach that we couldn't finish this off. It's been a great run and our seniors are warriors. Give credit to Wallington, they made a few more plays than we did."