Valley suffers heavy defeat to rivals Old Tappan

Ethan Schwartz, Sports Writer|September 16, 2022

Olivia Jackson

Valley took a defeat from Old Tappan on Friday at 6. Conor Higgins and Nick Bruzzi arise from the line after the play.

Pascack Valley fell to Old Tappan by a score of 35-0 on Friday night. Old Tappan looked like a tough matchup on paper, having won their first two games of the season in blowout fashion. They proved to be an equally ruthless team on the field as well, starting the game off with an early 50-yard rushing touchdown from Aidan Heaney. Heaney would go on to be a thorn in Valley’s side all night, finishing the game with an impressive 155 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns.  

Things unraveled rather quickly for Valley, as Old Tappan scored on their next two possessions to make it 21-0 just 10 minutes into the game. The first was a defensive miscommunication that saw Nicolas Rossi catch a wide-open pass to run into the endzone. Old Tappan quarterback Tommy Caracciolo got himself a second touchdown pass on the following drive, finding wide receiver Evan Brooks on a deep ball in behind Valley’s secondary. Brooks was another key weapon for Old Tappan on the night, scoring 2 touchdowns to accompany his 2 receptions and 139 receiving yards. 

Despite being on the backfoot, Valley came close to a possible momentum-shifting touchdown before the end of the quarter. Quarterback Jake Crawbuck threw an inch-perfect pass into the hands of Christian Vargas in the endzone, who just couldn’t hang onto the ball through some heavy contact from Old Tappan’s cornerback. 

It would be back to business as usual for the Golden Knights after Valley’s missed opportunity. On their next drive, Heaney rushed for his second touchdown of the game. Brooks would also get a second touchdown on the night, when he broke loose on an 88-yard catch-and-run into the endzone. 

A rare bright spot for Valley came right before the two minute warning of the first half, when Vargas intercepted an underthrown pass from Caracciolo.

The second half saw Old Tappan’s offensive momentum wane, but their defense remained robust as they continued to frustrate Valley’s offense for the rest of the game. In an uneventful two quarters of football, neither team was able to find any points in the second half, as the game concluded with the same scoreline that ended the first. 

The loss sees Valley slip to 0-3 on the season, as Valley seek a positive result to turn their season around. Their next opportunity to bounce back will be away at Northern Highlands on Friday, September 23.