Cedar Creek tops St. Joseph on overtime field goal
Pat Moran has made that kick a thousand times. He has made it in his backyard. He has made it on the practice field. He has made it in his dreams.
Pat Moran has made that kick a thousand times.
He has made it in his backyard. He has made it on the practice field. He has made it in his dreams.
But he has never made it in a real game.
That changed on Saturday when he booted a 39-yard field goal to lift Cedar Creek to a 17-14 victory over St. Joseph in double overtime.
"It's something you can only dream about," Moran said after his game-winning kick popped the cork on a celebration on the Cedar Creek sideline.
"See this guy right here," Cedar Creek coach Tim Watson told his players, pointing to Moran in the postgame huddle. "He's not a kicker. He's a football player."
Senior all-purpose star Bo Melton and senior quarterback Jesse Milza rallied Cedar Creek from a pair of deficits on a damp, windy afternoon at Bill Bendig Field in Hammonton.
Melton caught 11 passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns as Cedar Creek (6-1, 4-0) clinched a share of the West Jersey Football League Independence Division title.
Milza was 20-for-36 passing for 266 yards and two touchdowns for the Pirates, the No. 13 team in The Inquirer Top 25.
The loss was haunting for No. 7 St. Joseph (5-2, 3-1).
Both of the Wildcats' setbacks have been by the same score in overtime, on field goals at the same end of the team's home field. St. Joseph lost, 17-14, to rival Holy Spirit on Sept. 10.
"It was like deja vu," St. Joseph coach Paul Sacco said. "I was like, 'Are you kidding me?' "
Sacco was pleased with the play of his defense but thought his team's inability to move the ball through the air allowed Cedar Creek to crowd the line of scrimmage and contain the Wildcats' ground game.
St. Joseph completed just one pass.
"They had 10 guys in the box," Sacco said.
Watson said Moran is "tireless" in his preparation, often traveling to North Jersey on Sundays to work with a kicking instructor.
"I'm just so proud of him," Watson said.
The game-winning kick was extra special for Moran because he had missed a pair of field-goal attempts at the same end of the field earlier in the game and also booted a punt that caught in the wind and ended up as a 9-yard loss.
"I don't think I ever did that before," Moran said.
Both teams had chances in overtime.
St. Joseph was lined up to try 34-yard field goal that would have won the game in the first overtime.
But after Cedar Creek called timeout to try to "ice" kicker Eric Graziano, Sacco changed his mind and sent his offense back onto the field.
Cedar Creek's defense held, sending the game into the second overtime.
"I should have kicked it," Sacco said. "I'll live with that one."
Moran trotted onto the field for an apparent 34-yarder to try to win the game in the second overtime. But the Pirates committed a false start, pushing the attempt back five yards.
"It didn't bother me," Moran said. "I'm just so grateful my coaches and my teammates had the confidence in me."
Moran had the wind behind him. His kick sailed through the uprights, well above the crossbar.
"I've prepared a long time for a moment like this," Moran said.
Cedar Creek 7 0 0 7 0 3 - 17
St. Joseph 7 7 0 0 0 0 - 14
SJ: Nate Johnson 92 kickoff return (Eric Graziano kick)
CC: Bo Melton 74 pass from Jesse Milza (Pat Moran kick)
SJ: Qwahsin Townsel 17 run (Graziano kick)
CC: Melton 10 pass from Milza (Moran kick)
CC: Moran 39 FG