Safety squeeze

Chester capitalizes on a safety and a 70-yard kickoff return to down Eldred for division title

By RICHARD A. ROSS

CHESTER, NY — When it comes to football, Eldred and Chester have one thing in mind: their encounters with each other that will ultimately define their seasons. Those prime-time clashes are always hard-hitting tough football games, often decided by one or two key plays.

Both teams have historically dominated Livingston Manor/Roscoe, the only other Class D team in Section Nine. Consequently, Eldred and Chester traditionally wrangle twice each year, first for division bragging rights and, ultimately, for the Section Nine title. Following Eldred’s peculiar 8-6 loss to Chester on October 17, such a rematch will hinge on the outcome of the Eldred vs. LM/R tilt on October 24. The winner will play Chester for the Class D crown.

A year ago, Chester won the division by downing Eldred 14-13 on a disputed extra-point snafu. That became moot when Eldred stormed back to beat Chester 20-16 in last year’s Class D title game to exorcise the demons of the division loss and the 2006 Section Nine clash won by Chester on a last-second interception in the end zone by Darren Mann. In 2005, Eldred won both the division and sectional titles.

Eldred, comprised predominantly of juniors, worked assiduously all week to prepare for the encounter in Chester’s Enchanted Forest. Figuring that Chester might look to pass, defensive coach John LiGreci put some new wrinkles in his defense.

Chester QB Matt Balzano threw six times and completed three passes, but those 25 air yards were not significant. Defenses ruled the night as both teams neutralized each other, although Chester clearly won the battle in the trenches on both sides of the ball.

Missing starting tackle Matt Puzio, Eldred did a sub-par job in run blocking and pass protection for QB Bryan Henry. The result was an anemic offense that tallied only 130 total yards.

Chester’s Tyler Dieudonne thrilled the homecoming crowd with 26 carries for 92 yards and even more so with his 70-yard kickoff return for a TD. Eldred tacklers didn’t wrap on that run and during the rest of the fray, the football rookie kept the chains moving.

Still, Eldred’s defense toughened when it had to. Unfortunately, it was on the field much of the night.

The quirk factor came into play early. The Yellow Jackets struck first, capitalizing on a hard hit by Steven Combs that knocked the ball loose from Balzano’s hands late in the first quarter. An alert Matt Balcom gathered it up and ran nine yards into the endzone to give Eldred a 6-0 lead with 2:09 remaining in the first quarter. Bobby Warden’s PAT failed. At that juncture, body language showed Eldred’s confidence and Chester’s dismay.

Henry had little time to set up his throws and was often scrambling. He would eventually complete 3/10 passes for 28 yards on the night, but drops on long passes at the most inopportune time would change the outcome of the game.

Following Eldred’s score, both teams’ defenses stymied the other.

Midway through the second quarter, Chester got it going. A 25-yard run by senior Danny Conklin got the ball to the Eldred 35. On a fourth and four, Balzano hit JP Hackett on a slant over the middle to move the chains. Dieudonne got it to the one, but a huge stop by Eldred’s defense allowed them to take over on downs a mere 36 inches from their own goal line.

Chester packed it in. On three keepers, Henry could only advance it to the seven and Warden went back to punt.

Re-enter the quirk factor.

Scott Hallock’s long snap sailed over Warden’s head for the safety. Eldred had to then kick off from its own 20. Warden’s kick sailed to the Chester 30 where Dieudonne eluded one would-be tackler and flew upfield as the rest of Eldred’s defense waved goodbye to him on his 70-yard jaunt to the endzone. Balzano’s two-point conversion-pass attempt to tight end Victor Cruz was incomplete.

Just like that Eldred’s 6-0 lead had morphed into an 8-6 deficit, although it’s safe to say that no one at Chester Commons believed that would be the final score.

As the half wound down, Eldred’s offensive coordinator Patrick Kean unveiled a split offense and Chester looked confused. Henry threw a pass to Balcom that could have put Eldred on top but he couldn’t haul it in and the teams retired to half time.

Eldred held Chester on its opening drive of the second half but Chester’s defense made Eldred’s possessions short but far from sweet.

Each team failed to make much headway in the third quarter. With 41 seconds remaining, Henry ran eight yards and was hauled out of bounds. Eldred began the fourth quarter on its own 46 but it was more of the same, short or lost yardage on runs, incomplete passes to follow. Even a rare Chester encroachment penalty couldn’t give a spark to ignite the sputtering Eldred offense.

Chester ran Dieudonne time and again and helped to eat up five and half minutes.

With 3:50, Eldred unveiled the split offense with an incomplete pass to Balcom. Next, Henry’s five-yard run left only 1:57 on the clock.

On a fourth and 14, he launched a pass for Combs but the ball went in and out of his hands, preventing Eldred from having the final word in the quirk war.

Chester took a knee and the teams promised to see each other in three weeks at the Section Nine title game in Middletown. LM/R hopes Eldred won’t keep that promise.

Coach Frank Kean scouted the LM/R game at Tri-Valley and knows his team is in for an epic battle. It’s Eldred’s homecoming and you can be sure that LM/R is looking to pull off an historic upset and replace Eldred on D-Day against Chester.

Kean was a little disappointed. “We didn’t block well tonight, but I thought our defense played great.” He admitted that while Henry was harried on his pass attempts, a couple of key dropped passes turned out to be key. But clearly, the high snap that led to the safety and the lack of coverage that fueled Dieudonne’s kickoff return were the game’s defining moments.

Kean’s team is young. With Puzio’s absence, he had only three seniors on the field to Chester’s 12.

Stat line: Dieudonne was 21/92. Balzano completed 3/6/25. Henry carried the ball 11/42 yards. Counts was 10/32. Henry threw 3/10/28.

Eldred fell to 3-3 (0-1 Class D), while Chester improved to 5-2 (2-0 Class D).

Visit riverreportersports.com for more details and an album of game photos.