Christopher’s offense exploded in the second half with 28 unanswered points in its 41-14 win over Woodside Friday.
Running back Tyler Davis was a big part of the offense in the last two quarters running for 123 yards on four carries. His longest was a 51-yard touchdown run for the Cougars’ last score.
Christopher also got contribution from Jon Scarcella who got 35 yards in the first half on two carries and complimented that with 67 yards on three carries in the second half including a 25-yard touchdown run.
Near the end of the third quarter, Scarcelia essentially put the game away on a 25-yard touchdown run to give the Cougars a 34-14 lead.
The Cougars moved the sticks through the air as well.
Quarterback Conner O’Callaghan in his first start threw for 140 yards in 17 completions from 23 attempts.
“In the beginning he was a little nervous, but once we got into it he really showed us what he could do so I think it was a great game for him,” tight end Jason Scirigione said about O’Callaghan.
O’Callaghan threw three TDs while running in another and Scirigione led the Cougars with eight catches for 83 yards and two TDs.
“Once I started connecting with him I was like ‘I need to throw it to him more because he’s a really dynamic receiver’ and he’s one of the best probably ever at Christopher,” O’Callaghan said.
It was Christopher’s other tight end Ahola Cooper, however, who got the Cougars on the board from a 22-yard pass from O’Callaghan in the first quarter following the Wildcats’ first scoring drive.
“We had a pretty tough first half,” Christopher coach Tim Pierleoni said. “[Woodside] did an excellent job; they brought pressure, they had a good pressure package.”
When it seemed like the Cougars were heading into the half with a 14-7 deficit, Woodside committed a turnover that shifted the momentum toward Christopher.
Christopher punted with less than a minute left in the half. As the ball bounced in the 6-yard line, it hit a Woodside player and Christopher jumped on the ball. On the next play, O’Callaghan connected with Scirigione to get the Cougars within a point as the extra point was missed.
“Once we got into the second half I felt really confident and that’s when everything started going well with our team and that’s when we played really well,” O’Callaghan said.
In the third quarter, the Wildcats were down 21-14 and were looking to surprise the Cougars with a fake punt on their own 25-yard line needing five yards to reach the first down marker. Christopher read the play well and tackled Woodside for a loss.
The very next play, O’Callaghan found Scirigione for the duo’s second touchdown of the night.
“Scirigione is an excellent football player so we talked about throwing the ball to the best guy that we have and that’s our best guy and he did a good job of getting it to him,” coach Pierleoni said.
Defensively, Christopher stepped up when it needed it the most. Woodside attempted two fourth-down plays, on Christopher’s 19 and 27-yard line, in the second quarter and another in the third, on Christopher’s 33-yard line, but were unsuccessful.
Christopher’s defense allowed 79 rushing yards and 139 passing yards in the first half. It was a different story in the second as Woodside rushed for -14 yards and 116 yards passing.
“I like the way the kids came back the second half,” coach Pierleoni said. “Our coaches did a great job did adjusting and I think the score kind of says where we’re at in the second half.”
