One to remember
FREEPORT — Ryan Weigold thrust his arms in the air as a throng of Freeport students and teammates surrounded him, jumping up and down in celebration on the soggy turf at Swartz Field.
Yellowjackets' football coach John Gaillot had trouble controlling his emotions as well, tearing up as he talked about the character of his team.
In what was the last regular season game at Swartz Field, which has more than 90 years of history, this game may have been one of the wildest and most memorable as Freeport scored two touchdowns in the final minute for a 32-25 win over Deer Lakes Friday night.
“We gave the fans a scare a little bit,” Weigold said, smiling. “This was exciting stuff, though. We did what we had to do.”
And that includes a frantic final two minutes of the game.
Trailing 25-19 with a little more than two minutes remaining, Weigold directed a five-play, 74-yard scoring drive for a 26-25 lead with one minute on the fourth-quarter clock.
Weigold used his feet, sliding in the pocket and moving out of it, scrambling to buy time to complete four passes on the drive.
He hit Josh Beale with a big 27-yard pass play down to the Deer Lakes 22. On the next play, Weigold lofted a perfect pass to Dylan Hochbein, who beat a defender to the pylon for a 22-yard score and a one-point lead.
Gaillot praised Beale, who wears uniform No. 87, for helping the Yellowjackets get into position for the winning TD.
“The key was Ryan scrambling and hitting Josh Beale not once, but twice,” Gaillot said. “Josh has done an amazing job for us. When we need a play, it seems like it's been 87.”
Deer Lakes, though, drove to the Freeport 16 in the waning seconds and set up for a 33-yard field goal attempt by Sam Saldutte, who had hit a 21-yard and a 32-yard field goal earlier in the game.
Saldutte briefly turned his back to the holder and took a step toward the Deer Lakes sideline, thinking a time out was called.
But the ball was snapped and his kick was low and late. Justin Brestensky knifed in and blocked the kick, Kris Keppel scooped it up and ran 78 yards for the final score as time expired.“What do they say, 'Stuff happens?'” said Deer Lakes coach Steve Sciullo, who started 18 games in the NFL as an offensive guard. “Most of my life, being involved in these games, these are games I'm not used to losing. Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.”Deer Lakes (5-2, 4-2) looked as if it would send Swartz Field out on a sour note.Hunter Burns rushed for 231 yards on 44 bruising carries as the Lancers ran 62 offensive plays to just 29 for Freeport.Deer Lakes had the ball late in the fourth quarter, but Burns was stuffed on runs on first and second down and Scott Kelly's third-down pass sailed high to force a punt and give Freeport a final crack.“Weigold was just a play-maker,” Gaillot said. “The kids were backed up against the wall and they just went out there and made plays. We kept fighting. This was a big game for our character. They honestly should believe they can do anything if they put their mind to it.”Weigold completed 10-of-16 passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns.He found Dylan Hochbein in the first quarter on a screen pass and Hochbein did the rest, weaving his way and breaking tackles for a 56-yard score to put Freeport up 6-3.Perhaps Weigold's biggest TD pass — other than the game-winner late, of course — came with 43 seconds left in the half when he hit Brandon Hochbein for a 48-yard score to give the Yellowjackets a 19-13 lead at the break.“We knew we had to get something done there, too, because they were controlling the ball for five, six minutes a pop,” Weigold said. “We started going up top and taking advantage of our great athletes.”Ian Miller also made the most of his opportunities with 118 yards rushing on just nine carries.His 76-yard touchdown run tied the score at 13-13 in the second quarter.Freeport (6-1, 5-1) is now in control of the Allegheny Conference with a one-game lead and a tiebreaker on Highlands with two games remaining.Winning the last regular-season game at Swartz Field — Freeport could get a home game in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs — was of the upmost importance to the Yellowjackets.“This was one of the best games here, ever,” Gaillot said, choking back tears. “It was just unbelievable. So proud of this town. We wanted this one more than anything. It didn't matter who we were playing.”
