Taking advantage of several St. Paul turnovers, the Ansonia Chargers jumped off to a 21 – 0 lead before the Falcons staged a furious second-half comeback.
Thanks to two big plays by star running back Montrell Dobbs, the Chargers were able to hang on for a big 45 – 29 win, lifting their record to 6 – 2 and keeping their playoff hopes alive.
St. Paul had cut the lead to 38 – 29 late in the fourth quarter on a spectacular 88-yard touchdown pass from Tanner Bachand to Travis Thomas, who leaped high in the air with three Ansonia defenders around him to snag the ball and run to pay dirt.
It looked at that point like it would come down to the wire between these two NVL powers, but Dobbs came through as he often does, both on offense and defense.
On the ensuing kickoff following the Falcons’ score, he scooped up the ball and ran 90 yards untouched for the game’s clinching touchdown. But he wasn’t through yet.
With just over five minutes left in the game, Bachand once again hooked up with Thomas for what appeared to be a 65-yard scoring strike. But just as Thomas was about to score, Dobbs came out of nowhere to strip the ball from his hands. Thomas made a desperate attempt to recover the pigskin, but it squirted threw his hands and out of bounds for a touchback.
“That was a huge play for us,” said Ansonia coach Tom Brockett after the game. “Montrell has a knack for the big plays and along with that kickoff return really nailed it down for the win.”
Ansonia had a dominant night running the ball against the Falcons, who came into the game 6 – 1 and looking for a playoff berth in Class MM in their first year of Naugatuck Valley League competition. The Chargers had over 300 yards rushing to go along with just 34 yards through the air.
“Our offensive line did a great job tonight,” said Brockett, who was celebrating the birth of his first child as well this week. “They opened up holes all over the place and Dobbs, Kinnebrew and Sobin all had big nights.”
Christian Sobin, a senior who has been battling injuries all year, had a great game with 108 yards on just five carries, one of which was a brilliant 82-yard touchdown jaunt. Kinnebrew added 68 yards rushing with two touchdowns and Dobbs led all runners with 140 yards on 24 carries.
The Chargers took an early lead after the Falcons twice fumbled on kickoff returns. It was 21 – 0 early in the second period and a lot of the wind seemed to go out of St. Paul’s sails.
“We made some mistakes early and it really cost us,” said the Falcons’ coach Jude Kelly. “This was a big game for us in the playoff race and Ansonia just took it away from us. They are tough to beat and home and you just can’t spot them a 21-point advantage.”
Michael Palmquist added a 29-yard field goal to help Ansonia to a 24 – 7 halftime lead, and was perfect on the night with six-of-six extra point conversions.
Palmquist is just a sophomore and has been improving with each game.
Ansonia’s biggest lead of the night came early in the second half when Sobin’s long touchdown run put the Chargers up 38 – 7. It looked like a big-time blowout was in the works, but St. Paul’s explosive offense finally took hold and the team scored 22 unanswered points to make a game of it.
“I’m proud that my team didn’t give up,” said Kelly. “But we were in too deep of a hole, and that kickoff return by Dobbs really deflated us.”
Ansonia’s big win keeps their playoff hopes in Class S alive. They are now ranked fourth in the division, up from last week’s seventh place ranking.
The Chargers return to action on Thursday when they travel to Seymour to face the Wildcats, 1 – 7 following their tough loss to Wolcott this week.
“Right now all we’re focusing on is Seymour,” said Brockett. “We just need to keep winning.”
