Warrior Defense Stout in Loss to Immaculata

OVERVIEW

A yard away from a touchdown that could have led to one of the biggest upsets in recent Somerset County high school football, the Watchung Hills football team came up short on three straight tries and then also fell short on the scoreboard, losing 12-0 to unbeaten Immculata Friday night in Somerville.

The winless Warriors created four turnovers, each of which gave them the ball in Immaculata territory. But they could never punch the ball into the end zone, including on their final attempt midway through the fourth quarter when they were stopped on four tries from the 2-yard line.

IN SHORT

The game came down to one set of downs. Trailing 6-0 early in the fourth quarter, the Warriors took over on the Immaculata 13 after a fumble recovery by Zack Melillo. Three plays later, Anthony Prus picked up a first down at the Immaculata 2. But four running plays netted just one yard. Conversely, Immaculata was able to cover 99 yards on four running plays to secure the touchdown that sealed the victory.

TOP WARRIOR

It was a strong effort by the Watchung Hills defense, holding an Immaculata offense that had scored 91 points in its first three games to six points (Immaculata's first touchdown came on an interception return). Right in the middle was Anthony Rizzolo, the 6-foot-1, 300-pound junior who stuffed the Immaculata running attack all game long and also recorded his team-high second interception of the season.

TOP PERFORMACES

OFFENSE—Anthony Prus was a workhorse, carrying the ball 29 times for 88 yards. Charlie Perruso added 26 yards on seven tries and Matt Neilsen contributed 21 yards on four attempts.

DEFENSE—In addition to Rizzolo's interception on Immaculata's first play of the game, and Melillo's fumble recovery deep in Immaculata territory, Perruso and Neilson had fumble recoveries as well. The Warriors came into the game without a single recovery of an opponent's fumble this season.

TOUGH OPPONENT

Two big plays by Immaculata prevented the upset. Blair Cook returned an interception 53 yards for the Spartans' first touchdown. Immaculata's second touchdown came on a one-yard plunge by Kellen Sperduto, one play after he had a 63-yard run.

THEY SAID IT

"You come into a place like this and the aura that it has, we put it all out there on the field and we showed we could hang with them. I love my teammates and the way we played. We know that we are just a few mistakes away from being 4-0 ourselves."—Junior defensive tackle Anthony Rizzolo

Up next—Linden at home Thursday at 4 p.m.