South Suffers Gut-Wrenching Defeat at the Hands of Ramapo

Perhaps more than any other sport, football can change the most drastically on one play. In one second.

Interceptions, broken tackles, fumbles, and tipped passes can all occur at a nanosecond’s notice and can completely alter the course of a game, or maybe even a season.

A perfect example of this quick change of fate was during Thursday/Monday’s contest between the Clarkstown South Vikings and Ramapo High School Raiders.

This game started out tied 0-0 after one quarter, and it wasn’t until 6:17 remaining in the second quarter when things got interesting.

South had controlled the game for the most part when Ramapo got a 36-yard touchdown run which put them ahead 7-0. Then came Drastic Momentum Shift number 1.

David Schiff, with his lightning-quick speed returned the ensuing kickoff 79 yards for a Vikings touchdown which tied the game at 7.

Just six seconds later, we saw Drastic Momentum Shift number 2. With the ball at their own 32, the Raider coughed it up, and just under one minute later, Tommy Kiernan scored from 24 yards out to give the Vikings their first lead of the day, 14-7. At half time, there was a lengthy weather delay during which I got a quick interview with Vikings head coach, Mike Scarpelli. When asked about the changes of fate in the first half, he remarked, “That’s just the way the game is played… it’s definitely a momentum swing in our favor.” He didn’t get too excited, however, adding, “We’ve got a lot of football left to play. Two full quarters, that’s a long time.”

Boy, was he right.

The 3rd quarter was filled with missed opportunities for Clarkstown. The Vikings got an interception but didn’t score any points on their drive and missed a 36-yard field goal with 4:32 remaining.

Just as the fourth quarter began, there was more thunder and lightning and the game was suspended and resumed on Monday. This turned out to be crucial for Ramapo, as Clarkstown was controlling the game until this delay.

When the game restarted, Ramapo had a 4th and 2 from the Clarkstown 12 yard line, but couldn’t get any points from inside the red zone.

Then, with 1:10 left in regulation, and the game firmly in the Vikings’ hands, we got our final Drastic Momentum Shift.

South fumbled at their own 17 yard line, and Ramapo quickly took advantage as they scored on a touchdown pass from Hakim Santana to Jaunt’ea Brown. The Raiders then surprised nearly everyone as they tried a two-point conversion which paid off when Rojay McDonald ran in to give them a shocking 15-14 victory.

The Vikings will look to turn their fortunes around as they travel to Suffern on September 21st to face the 1-1 Mounties.