Pascack Valley wins second straight by spreading the wealth
Indians post first shutout since last season, win second in a row.
Last week it was all Matt Urrea for Pascack Valley. This week, nearly everyone’s fingerprints are somewhere on this game.
Urrea played a big role, but he was hardly the focal point for the Indians (2-5) who won their second game in a row, this time it was 26-0 on the road against a Ridgefield Park (5-3) team that is bound for the North 2 Group 3 playoffs.
“I’m just happy for the boys to get back to back wins,” head coach Len Cusumano said. “This is a very good Ridgefield Park team, and we were very impressed by them.”
The defense was on full display early and often for PV in the shutout.
On the Scarlets second play of the game, PV sophomore Charlie Looes came up with a sack to make it 3rd and 21. Then, the next play, senior Phil Wong came up with the sack to make it 4th and 3o. Wong finished with 2.5 sacks and was the leader of an unrelenting front seven for PV. But Wong, like so many of his coaches and teammates, is quick to deflect praise.
“We played so well on defense because everyone did their job,” he said. “We tackled well and the coaches had a great game plan going in.”
Tyler DiLorenzo’s second interception of the season on a Hail Mary attempt by Ridgefield Park with 53 seconds left in the half helped the Indians who are usually susceptible to the big play. PV only surrendered two plays that went for double digit yards before penalties were assessed.
The offense also did its part.
Urrea saw the majority of the action on the ground, totaling 27 carries for 177 yards and an offensive fumble recovery that he took for one of two touchdowns, but Josh Tillis, and Ricky Mizzoni also made an impact.
Tillis totaled two receptions for 36 yards and a touchdown and added another 18 yards on the ground. Tillis’s touchdown reception was the first of two touchdown passes for quarterback Joe Campagna, who came back after missing the last two weeks with an injury.
“Joe came back from an injury and did a great job getting the ball to receivers,” Cusumano said of the sophomore quarterback who enjoyed his first career multi-touchdown game and went 4/7 with 81 yards and two interceptions along with the two touchdowns.
This win will look to be a momentum builder for PV, which takes on Cliffside Park and Bergenfield over the next two weeks and looks to win out the rest of the season.
“We do still have some things to work on like cleaning up penalties,” Cusumano said. “But we’ve got to have good practices, which will lead to good games and positive results.”
Jake Aferiat graduated in 2017.