Football Wrap-up

Plainfield 

resilient in win

over  Killingly

By Ron P. Coderre

High school football moved into its second week of play and the Plainfield Panthers remain as the only team to record victories.  The Panthers slipped past a determined but error-prone Killingly eleven 34-21 in raising their record to 2-0.  The loss dropped Killingly to 0-2 on the season, a start the Redmen were hoping to avoid.

Quinebaug Valley Pride and Woodstock Academy were both beaten badly as the Pride and Centaurs were unable to generate any offense for the second week in a row.  Both teams are 0-2.

The local prep schools, Hyde-Woodstock and Pomfret School kicked off their seasons with Saturday afternoon contests.  Hyde-Woodstock emerged victorious, shutting down Dexter School 18-0, while the Pomfret Griffins were trounced by Cheshire Academy.

Jankowski Passes Panthers By Redmen

Senior quarterback Steve Jankowski continued his stellar early season play, leading Plainfield over Killingly 34-21.  Jankowski was 5-11 in the air for 161 yards and a pair of touchdowns.  He also had a 1-yard sneak for a touchdown on the ground.

Killingly, on the other hand, let a halftime lead, albeit only one point, slip through its fingers for the second week in succession.  The Redmen led 15-14 at intermission thanks solely to running back Michael Elsey, who accounted for 14 of Killingly’s points.  He opened the scoring on a 72-yard pass-run completion from sophomore quarterback Kyle Derosier and followed that up with another scoring reception of 12-yards.  Elsey also ran in for a two-point conversion putting Killingly ahead at the half.

Plainfield regained the lead in the third quarter on a Jankowski to Jordan Federer 61-yard pass hookup.  That was Jankowski’s second TD toss, his first coming in the second quarter to Tyler Ballard for 25 yards.  Undaunted, Killingly regained the lead, 21-20, once more, when Austin Caffrey tallied on a 3-yard touchdown flip from Derosier in the third stanza.

The rest of the contest belonged to the Panthers as Ballard, for the second week in a row, had a long kickoff return.  This week it was a 94-yard effort.  Linebacker Andre Bergeron closed out the scoring and snuffed out any hopes of victory for Killingly when he intercepted a Dersoier screen pass and ran it in for an 11-yard touchdown.

Federer (23-95) and Kade Amster, who ran for 39 yards on eight carries were Plainfield’s top ground gainers.  Federer had two catches for 70 yards to lead the Panthers in that department.  Derosier shone through the air for Killingly, completing 13 of 32 passing attempts for 265 yards and three touchdowns.  Elsey was his top receiver with five catches for 137 yards and a pair of scores.  Plainfield, which is 2-0, entertains a rugged New London team at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.  Killingly in search of its first victory takes on Fitch at home, also in a 6:30 p.m. start on Friday.

Pride and Centaurs Lose Again

Woodstock Academy thirsting for a win traveled to Colchester for a Saturday afternoon encounter with Bacon Academy and came home a 52-7 loser.  The Centaurs lone score came in the third quarter on a Kyle Prouty 19-yard reception from signal caller Trent Appleton, who was 9-18-134.  Appleton with 54 yards on the ground was Woodstock’s top rusher.

Quinebaug Valley Pride took the long ride to Bridgeport for a game against Bullard Haven and was soundly beaten 34-6.  The Pride scored first on a Jeremee Perez 3-yard run and was never heard from for the remainder of the contest.  The QV Pride at 0-2 travels to Cheney Tech on Friday for a 6:30 p.m. game.  Woodstock entertains St. Bernard/Norwich Tech in a 1:30 p.m. contest at the Bentley Athletic complex on Saturday.

Murphy’s Coattail Carries Hyde to Victory

Hyde-Woodstock opened its 2014 football season with the Jimmy Murphy show.  Murphy accounted for all the Wolfpack’s points as they shutout Dexter School 18-0.  Murph scored a touchdown in each of the final three quarters of the game.  His first two tallies came via runs of 10 and 12 yards, while his final score came on a 46-yard pass interception.  The stellar running back had 112 yards on 16 carries, while his running mate Marcus Greenridge totaled 86 yards on 14 carries.

Pomfret School opened its season with a disappointing 49-20 loss at the hands of Cheshire Academy.

 

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