Junior Leo Etter scored on a 42-yard reception to give Old Tappan the lead for good in a 35-7 win over River Dell on Friday night.
OLD TAPPAN - Up against a team with a winning pedigree for the second straight week and playing its home opener, Northern Valley/Old Tappan broke the game open 2 minutes into the third quarter and went on to defeat River Dell, 35-7, on Friday night.
On a 2nd-and-11 from his own 33-yard line Old Tappan junior quarterback Zach Miceli found junior Christakis Nicolaou open at the Hawks' 40. Nicolaou caught the ball, put a move on a defender and outran the River Dell defense for a 67-yard touchdown to give the Golden Knights a 28-7 lead.
"I knew if the corner was down on the edge I would be open," Nicolaou said. "We have a great quarterback in Zach Miceli and he always puts the ball in the right spot. I just had to make a move after that because he set me up."
Old Tappan took the lead for good the first time it touched the ball. After a fumbled snap was recovered by Knights senior Devyn Radoian, Miceli floated a pass down the left sideline to junior Leo Etter, who was streaking downfield. Etter caught the ball in stride and raced into the end zone to complete a 42-yard touchdown play 3 minutes into the game.
"We talked during the week that if they pressed up we were going to run that play," Etter said. "Coach [Brian] Dunn made a great play call, the line blocked, Zach made a great throw and I caught it."
"We have a lot of different guys out there," Miceli said, "and they all bring something unique to the table, whether it's speed, hands, size. I love every single one of them, but it starts in the trenches with the line giving me protection. Those guys up front did really well tonight and our playmakers did what they always do on the outside, which is make plays."
River Dell took the ensuing kickoff at its own 27 and began a drive downfield. Senior running back Cain Lanza was superb with tough running and senior quarterback Zion Yoon completed passes to sophomore Iain Rossig (14 yards), senior Jordan Mellaci (10), and sophomore Chris Nader (12) as the Hawks made it down to the 7-yard line, but Old Tappan's defensive backs broke up a 4th down pass and the Knights took possession inside their own 10-yard line.
Miceli went right to work connecting with Etter for 18 yards and two plays later for another 19 yards as the first quarter came to an end.
Etter was asked how he seemed to be getting open so easily.
Cain Lanza scored RIver Dell's touchdown.
"It isn't easy," he said. "You have to work hard during the week and when you work hard during the week the games become easier."
Two plays later Radoian swept around left end and sprinted down the sideline for a 44-yard touchdown and 14-0 lead.
"We have solid running backs again, whether it's a power back, a speed back or someone who can catch the ball," Miceli said. "We all do different things on this team and that's why we rotate so much. So many guys come in because they all bring something different - which is what is great about this team."
River Dell got on the board with 2-and-a-half minutes left in the first half on a 12-play, 76-yard drive.
Three plays gained 6 yards and, on 4th-and-4 from the River Dell 32, Yoon hooked up with Rossig for 18 yards to midfield. A couple of plays later Yoon scrambled for 12 yards and Lanza followed with a 14-yard charge up the middle.
On 1st-and-10 from the Old Tappan 12 Lanza gained 7 yards, dragging Knights defenders along the way. Two plays later Lanza scored and River Dell closed to 14-7.
It took the Golden Knights less than 2 minutes to boost their lead back up to 14 points. Miceli found Etter open for 18 yards and then connected with senior Aidan Nally for 17 more. Senior Joseph Crescitelli gained 4 yards on the ground and then caught a pass for 10 yards and a first down at the Hawks 11. On 3rd down Miceli zipped a pass to junior Nicholas Blanchard for a touchdown and 21-7 lead heading into intermission.
"A couple of quick strikes," said Dunn. "Zach Miceli is tremendous. He put the ball on the spot every time today. I don't think he had one bad throw. He works hard at it and he made some really good decisions about where to put the ball. He keeps his eyes downfield. We've got good receivers who know how to work in space."
After Nicolaou scored to open the second half River Dell crossed midfield but a 4th-down pass was knocked down by Knights' junior A.J. Burke and the Old Tappan defense took over the game from there.
Junior Zach Miceli led Old Tappan to its second straight win to start the season.
"We were getting a little pushed back in that one drive in the first half," Dunn said of his defense. "I wasn't thrilled with the way we just kind of laid back and let that happen. But I was really pleased with the physicality in the second half."
"We came out in the first half not as physical as we wanted to be," added Nicolaou, who had a big hit late in the game. "Last week we also had that issue and we talked about it all week. We talked about it at halftime - about being more physical and how we had to make tackles - because they were running all over us in the first half. We didn't want that to happen in the second half. So we came out with more fire, more intensity and being more physical. That's what the game is about."
Golden Knights senior running back Damian Du Toit entered the game late in the third quarter and gained 37 yards, including a 13-yard TD run.
"We got some competition in spots with some guys who can play," said Dunn. "Hopefully we present some problems for people who have to be concerned about a lot of different kids. We have some kids who are coming into their own."
"We lost some key guys from last year," added Miceli. "But we have some seniors, juniors ready to step up in those roles. They learned a lot and were just ready to play. They bought into the program, all the coaching and it's just led to our success."
Old Tappan improved to 2-0, while River Dell fell to 0-2.
"In our first game we weren't as physical as we would like," said Etter. "This week in practice we worked a lot on being physical and it showed on the field tonight."
"We aren't the biggest team in the world," added Nicolaou, "but we've got some skill guys and a great line and that's what gives us the ability to become the best players we can be. We have a lot of great players who are able to do stuff. In practice we go up against a lot of great people every day so there is never a day off. We're always putting in the hard work. There is more work to be done but we have a great supporting cast."
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