CHA edges Spartans in 6-2 tilt

by BRYAN ARMEN GRAHAM

Chestnut Hill Academy's bend-don't-break defense withstood a last-minute Springfield threat to edge the host Spartans, 6-2, in an Independence Football League tilt Friday night.

Despite never leading, the Spartans had an opportunity to win the game with 32 seconds remaining. But Chestnut Hill's Jon Salem broke up Mike Malizia's fourth-down pass play to Jon Wallace on the two-yard line, and the Blue Devils escaped Spartan Stadium with their fourth consecutive victory.

With the win, the Blue Devils (4-1, 2-0 IFL) are in the early driver's seat for a their third league championship in four years.

Staunch defensive play helped CHA overcome some dooming statistical discrepancies. Springfield had 16 first downs to Chestnut Hill's four, and gained 295 total yards to CHA's 99.

But the Blue Devils were able to stop the Spartans when it counted.

"Our defense has played great all year," said CHA head coach Jack Plunkett. "This is basically four games in a row where the other team's varsity didn't score on us. That's really something."

A raucous Homecoming crowd witnessed a chess match between two of the area's most esteemed football minds, Plunkett and Springfield's Bill Gallagher -- the one-time CHA head coach under whom Plunkett started his career as an assistant.

The Spartans (3-3, 3-1) asserted their formidable ground attack from the opening drive, a run-based offense predicated on misdirection. Gallagher's distribution of counters and tosses and traps and options among four different backs kept CHA's defense on their heels for most of the night.

Malizia, the senior signal-caller, led the way for the Spartans, completing 7 of 13 passes for 98 yards. He also added a game-high 88 yards rushing.

But as efficiently as Malizia moved his side down the field, the Spartans couldn't crack the end zone in five tries. Four times, Springfield tried to convert a short-yardage fourth down in the red zone-- four times, they were denied by a Chestnut Hill defense that seemed to tighten with their backs against the goal line. A fifth trip resulted in a blocked field goal attempt.

Midway through the second quarter, with the game still tied, Springfield squandered their best scoring chance of the night. Rather than attempt an easy field goal on 4th-and-3 from the Chestnut Hill eight-yard line, the Spartans shifted Malizia to tailback and inserted Andrew DeGiacomo behind center. The athletic Wallace, a senior wideout, burned his defender and was all alone in the end zone, but the deputy quarterback overthrew him badly.

The Blue Devils went three and out on the ensuing possession, failing to pick up a 3rd-and-1 on their own 19-yard line. But when Brian Picknally muffed a booming Scott Dziengelski punt, the Devils recovered the fumble on the Springfield 25.

One play later, Dziengelski lofted a pass to classmate Kris Kimball in the back corner of the end zone, who rose above his defender for a leaping touchdown reception. Picknally helped redeem himself by blocking Dziengelski's PAT attempt, keeping the Devils at six points.

Fittingly, the game's only turnover would produce the game's only

offensive score.

Trailing by six, the Spartans again drove deep into Chestnut Hill territory on their first possession of the second half. Peter Jacob, a bruising fullback who carried 13 times for 70 yards, steadily pounded the Chestnut Hill front line for five-yard gains, while the galloping Wallace kept the defense honest along the outside.

But Springfield's 12-play, 80-yard drive proved fruitless when CHA's Mike Flannery stuffed Rob Wise's field goal attempt.

"Just unbelievable," said Dziengelski, all smiles, following the game. "Our defense won the game for us."

The senior quarterback completed 6 of 9 passes for a modest 55 yards. But the 21-yard touchdown strike to Kimball would prove all the difference.

On the ground for the Devils, the instinctive Flannery carried 12 times for 35 yards -- including a nifty 15-yard jaunt on the first play of the second half when he twice reversed his field. But Plunkett lauded the junior's impact on the other side of the ball.

"He came up and pressured the quarterback on a lot of plays," Plunkett said. "He didn't get any sacks, but he forced him into some hurried throws which were huge plays for us when they weren't able to connect."

Salem — who could boast the dirtiest uniform on the field — was Dziengelski's favorite target, catching four passes for 40 yards. The junior also made a number of big plays at defensive back, including the clock-cleaner on Wallace that ended the game.

"That was one of the all-time efforts tonight," said Plunkett of Salem's big night. "Catching the ball, coming up and hitting people on defense-- he's a junior but he's playing like he's been back there for four or five years. He's just an awesome player."

Plunkett tweaked his defense down the stretch, inserting Wayne Crawford and Don Houck — the two bulkiest players on the roster — onto the defensive line. The sophomore tandem helped spark a languishing run defense during the fourth quarter.

It seemed the Devils had victory in hand after stopping Malizia on fourth down from the Chestnut Hill 10-yard line with 2:20 remaining, but they subsequently failed to move the chains during a brief, 26-second possession. Facing a 4th-and-15 on their own five-yard line, the Blue Devils chose to run the ball into the back of their end zone rather than risk a costly miscue.

Immediately after Malizia returned Dziengelski's free kick to the 50-yard line, the senior co-captain found Wallace down the sideline for a quick 30-yard reception. A first-down incompletion and two short running plays set up Malizia's last-ditch effort on the CHA 15-yard line— a sprint out option toward the right sideline — and Salem's big hit to save the day.

The Blue Devils return to Landreth Field this Friday to face IFL rival Lower Moreland. The Lions (3-2, 3-1) trounced Perkiomen School, 26-3, on Saturday. The kickoff is scheduled for 3:45 p.m.