Macaluso Leads Falcons to Crossover Win with 2 TD Passes and TD Run
MONROE, NJ – Trailing 13-7 after a J.F. Kennedy score with 5:19 to play in the third quarter, the Monroe Falcons needed to turn things around. Led by senior QB, Brandon Macaluso, Monroe rallied to defeat J.F. Kennedy with two scores over the final 17:19. Macaluso threw for two TD passes, and rushed for a third in the early moments of the fourth quarter to shape the Falcons, 20-13 victory.
Logan Richter was on the receiving end of Macaluso’s two TD passes. Macaluso connected with Richter for a 7-0 lead with 6:40 to play in the first period, and again with 1:50 to go in the third. Macaluso then added a QB keeper with 5:56 remaining in the contest. Anthony Salesi helped set up the Falcons’ final scoring drive with a huge interception along the Monroe sideline with 8 seconds to go in the third.
The Mustangs gave a spirited battle that indicated how much they have improved over last season. JFK, which already surpassed its win total for all of last season with its 40-0 victory over New Brunswick last week, was led by senior QB Richie Trotman. The Kennedy signal-caller, threw a TD pass to Grant Lorentzen with 1:18 left in the first half and connected with Lee Tobon for a 55-yard scoring play with 5:19 to in the third to turn a seven-point deficit into a 13-7 lead.
Senior defensive back Aiden Roche helped set up the tying score late in the second when he intercepted a Macaluso pass in Monroe territory. Kennedy had driven deep into Falcons’ territory on its previous offensive drive but was stopped on downs when Trotman’s pass to the end zone was just out of reach of the hands of junior wideout, Emilio Ruiz with 3:02 to go in the second.
With a second chance, Trotman made the most of it when he threw to Lorentzen for a 15-yard TD pass. Manny Perez-Quijano converted the extra point to knot the score at 7-7. The score remained that way going into the intermission. Up to the final two minutes of the first half, Monroe seemed to be in control as it was able to move the ball and had scoring opportunities.
On two occasions, the Falcons moved the ball into scoring position. Both times, the Falcons came up empty. The first time, Monroe was stopped on downs. The second time, the Falcons missed a field goal attempt from 35 yards. The Mustangs then opened the scoring in the second half with its second scoring drive of the game. After Monroe was forced to punt on their first two possessions of the second half, and Kennedy did the same on its first possession of the third, the Mustangs struck like lightning.
Following a running play by Fiheem Howell Jr (15 carries for 60 yards). for a decent gain, Trotman threw to his left toward the Kennedy sideline and found Tobon, who split two defenders and scampered up the Mustangs’ sideline for a 55-yard TD. The extra point was no good, but Kennedy led 13-7. Monroe responded promptly on its next drive. The Falcons put together a 65-yard drive to retake the lead.
The Monroe drive was highlighted by several key plays. The first was a QB keeper from Macaluso to convert on fourth down at the Monroe 45-yard line. Moments later, on third down, Macaluso fired a 33-yard pass to Logan Fotiadis (3 receptions for 49 yards) along the JFK sideline to move the Falcons to the Mustangs’ 22-yard line. Two plays later, Macaluso hooked up with Richter again for a 22-yard TD. The point after by Tommaso Demetrio was good for a 14-13 lead with 1:50 remaining in the third.
On Kennedy’s ensuing drive, the Mustangs managed to get a first down thanks to two tough runs from Howell. Near midfield, JFK decided to throw on first down. Trotman rolled out to his right and threw down the field toward the Monroe sideline. Salesi and Lorentzen battled for the ball, and Salesi managed to get in front of Lorentzen to intercept the pass and still had the presence of mind to get one foot inbounds after making the catch with eight seconds to play in the third.
Monroe took over on its own 25-yard line and didn’t waste time on getting its final scoring drive going quickly. Macaluso threw down the middle of the field to Ryan Bayoumy (2 receptions for 70 yards), which drew a pass interference call with two seconds left in the third. Macaluso then opened the fourth by rolling to his right and keeping it for a 22-yard gain to the Kennedy 38-yard line.
Several plays later, Macaluso rolled right again and threw a flare to Fotiadis, who turned it into a first down gain at the Kennedy 28-yard line. On the next play, Macaluso handed off to RB Michael Sabbio (15 carries for 67 yards), who ran left threw a hole opened up by the left side of the Falcons’ offensive line and got another first down at the Mustangs’ 16-yard line.
The Falcons crept closer to the JFK goal line with runs by Kimoni Yearwood (13 rushes for 41 yards) and Sabbio. Macaluso then went over the left side of the Monroe line to get into the end zone. Although the extra point was no good, Monroe had a 20-13 lead with just under six minutes to play in the contest. Kennedy was forced to punt on its next possession, and the Falcons got the ball back with 3:49 to play.
Sabbio rushed for a first down and almost got another. Macaluso then converted the first down on another keeper. The Monroe QB then took a knee twice to run out the clock and give the Falcons a hard-fought, 20-13 win. With the victory, Monroe improved to 3-2 overall on the season and won its second straight game. Kennedy, which had its two-game winning streak snapped, fell to 2-3 overall on the season.
Both teams will be back in action in Week 5. Monroe will travel to Singley Field to take on North Hunterdon in another Big Central Conference Crossover on Friday night, October 4th at 7:00 PM. Meanwhile, J.F. Kennedy will host Scotch Plains-Fanwood in a BCC Crossover as well on October 4th at 6:00 PM.
This was the first time the two schools played each other on the gridiron since 2019. The Falcons and Mustangs have only played each other twice since 2007. Kennedy leads the all-time series that dates back to 1984. Monroe has won the last seven meetings since 2000, but the Mustangs still hold a 13-9 edge.
