PERRY—Kirtland needed three overtimes to do it, but the Hornets avenged last season’s loss to Perry with a 22-21 win at Alumni Stadium.
Trailing 21-14 after Perry’s Dare’On Howard scored a touchdown to open the third overtime, the Hornets struck quickly with a 20-yard touchdown pass from Jake LaVerde to Nico Samac, and then LaVerde bulled his way into the end zone for a game-winning two-point conversion.
“Perry had great coverage on the play,” LaVerde said about the conversion try. “I scrambled out, put my shoulder down, and tried to find the end zone.”
The Hornets drew first blood when Danny Alfieri plunged into the end zone from one yard out with 10:35 remaining in the first half. Xavier Lasecki’s extra point gave the Hornets a 7-0 lead.
Kirtland’s defense held the Pirates but a Hornet miscue on a handoff led to Owen McKoon’s 10-yard scoop-and-score defensive touchdown that tied the score.
The Hornets regained the lead on Tyler Turk’s seven-yard TD run and took a 14-7 lead into the break.
Perry evened the score on a McKoon 14-yard TD run with 44 seconds left in the third quarter.
It took until triple overtime for the next score to happen, and it did, with Howard scoring from two yards out to take a 21-14 lead.
The determined Hornets answered quickly with the LaVerde to Samac halfback pass for a touchdown.
Kirtland head coach Tiger LaVerde never doubted that he’d go for two if the opportunity presented itself.
“We knew if we scored, we were going for two,” Coach LaVerde said. “We absolutely knew it; it was a play we ran a million times, and usually we throw it, but Perry covered it, so give them credit for that. Jake bought some time, made a play, and found the pylon. It was awesome.”
A game between two defending state champions lived up to the hype.
“(This game is) pretty special,” LaVerde said. “As a regular season game, it doesn’t get much better than this. Perry is a great program. They have great players; we’re fortunate enough to come out on top. I’m proud of these kids and how hard they fought.”
Jake LaVerde rushed for 150 yards on 23 carries and completed 1-of-3 passes for 20 yards and one touchdown.
Alfieri rushed 24 times for 98 yards and a TD, and Turk carried 13 times for 73 yards and a touchdown.
In overtime, Ryan Caimi picked off a pass, while Casey Carkhuff and Cameron Treadwell both recorded a sack.
Perry dropped to 2-1 following the triple overtime loss to Kirtland in a game for the ages.
“It was two teams that battled like crazy,” said Perry head coach Bob Gecewich. “There was a little bit of sloppy football on both sides, but both teams had chances to win at the end. It’s great football.”
Perry took the lead on its third overtime possession but could not hang on.
“We were running out of plays to call,” Gecewich said. “We just started calling some different stuff and hoped for the best.”
The Pirates capitalized on Kirtland’s four turnovers, even scoring a defensive touchdown in the second quarter to tie the game.
“Our defense kept answering the bell,” Gecewich said. “One the last series, we got a little overzealous and jumped the option pass, but at the end of the day, we went to three overtimes and only gave up 22 points, which means our offense isn’t doing their job. That’s on me.”
Perry’s offense was headlined by Luke Sivon, who hauled in four passes for 55 yards.
McKoon ran for 31 yards on 14 attempts with a touchdown, while Howard picked up 28 yards on seven carries with one touchdown.
Andrew Smith, Armani Chiappone, Taylor, and McKoon each recovered a fumble defensively.
Kirtland moved to 3-0 and will look to stay perfect when they host Independence next Friday.
Perry can bounce back when the Pirates hit the gridiron next Saturday when they visit Cleveland Central Catholic.
