Derby Head Coach Carmen DiCenso has seen his Red Raiders fail to capitalize on golden scoring opportunities before. His team might be especially haunted after Friday night’s offensive difficulties.
The Red Raiders’ inability to cash in on a pair of first half Wolcott fumbles proved costly as the visiting Eagles established their running game in the second half and ran out of DeFilippo Field with a 14 – 7 victory.
Derby started the game well, forcing Wolcott into a turnover on downs and taking the ball at their own 42-yard line. The offense wasted no time getting on the board.
On the first offensive play from scrimmage, sophomore quarterback Ray Krieger hooked up with sophomore wide receiver Jacob Tomczak on a 58-yard touchdown pass to stake the Raiders to a 7 – 0 lead.
Wolcott’s offense managed to only move 19 yards before punting the ball away. Derby managed to rack up 48 yards and reached the Wolcott 29-yard line before a negative pass play forced the Raiders to give up the ball on downs.
Derby had another great chance to score after Wolcott quarterback Dom Gambino was intercepted by senior D’Ron Conyers, putting the ball at Wolcott’s 26-yard line.
But Derby could only move the ball to the Eagles’ 8 before a delay of game penalty pushed them back to the Wolcott 13. Derby thought they had scored after an official signaled that junior wide receiver Rashawn Hendricks had hauled in a 14-yard pass from Krieger in the end zone.
But another official ruled that Hendricks did not make the catch, angering DiCenso and the rest of the Derby coaches. The incomplete pass forced Derby into a 30-yard field goal try, which kicker Luis Casco missed.
Derby had another golden scoring chance in the second quarter after Rich Gonzales recovered a DeVante Bonvillian fumble at Wolcott’s 22-yard line. Instead of cashing in, however, the drive ended when Wolcott linebacker Sean Berglund intercepted Krieger in the end zone to force a touchback.
A second Bonvillian fumble on the ensuing drive gave Derby the ball at Wolcott’s 30-yard line. Unfortunately for the Red Raiders, no points came from the next drive, either. A high snap on a 4th and 2 play from the Wolcott 10-yard line resulted in a run for no gain and a painful turnover on downs.
Derby’s defense staved off trouble after Wolcott got the ball at Derby’s 35 following a bad snap on a punt. An 8‑yard sack of Gambino highlighted the defensive stand and Wolcott’s drive ended when a fourth down and long pass at Derby’s 27 from Gambino to Jake Petillo fell incomplete in the end zone.
DiCenso bemoaned the Red Raiders’ inability to score deep in Wolcott territory.
“We had the ball inside their red zone three or four times in the first half and we didn’t get in the end zone,” DiCenso said. “Realistically, we could have led three scores to nothing in the first half had we got into the end zone, but we couldn’t get in.”
Failing to score came back to bite the Red Raiders in the second half as their defense finally surrendered points. Derby punted after an unsuccessful first possession of the second half. After getting the ball back, the Eagles ran the ball on seven of eight plays, marching 52 yards to their first score.
Running back Kevin Nicol provided the key plays, rushing for eight yards on a 3rd and 5 to extend the drive and 28 yards for a touchdown to finish it off. Wolcott added a 2‑point conversion with a Bonvillian run to give Wolcott an 8 – 7 lead with 6:50 left in the third.
Wolcott scored again two possessions later with a 1‑yard Nicol run at the 8:16 mark of the final quarter. Nicol ran for 43 yards in the 58-yard drive comprised exclusively of run plays. A failed 2‑point try left Derby’s deficit at seven.
Derby was unable to knot the score in the final eight minutes. Petillo intercepted Krieger at the Wolcott 1‑yard line to snuff out the next Derby drive and Krieger was picked off by Wolcott for a final time at the Eagles’ 20-yard line with less than two minutes to go. Wolcott proceeded to get a first down in three plays to seal the game.
DiCenso said his team played a solid defensive game, especially considering they held Wolcott to 14 points. But the offense has to start clicking and DiCenso said passing plays will be an emphasis in their coming practices.
“The kids weren’t running the right patterns tonight,” DiCenso said.
Wolcott Head Coach Patrick Russo did not like how his team played, particularly with the early turnovers. But he was proud of Nicol and the rest of the Eagles seniors for plowing through to get a win.
Nicol “just wouldn’t be denied,” Russo said. “I thought [Derby] was tremendous. There’s something about home field advantage and they played with great emotion and passion.”
Derby’s record stands at 3 – 3 as they prepare to host neighboring Ansonia (4 – 2) at 7 p.m. next Friday
