The Foran High football team fell behind 24-7, rallied back with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, but fell to Fairfield Warde, 24-21, in an SCC-FCIAC Challenge game at Tetreau-Davis Field on Sept 12.
“We ran out of time, that’s what I just told my kids,” Lion coach Jeff Bevino said. “We shot ourselves in the foot too many times. I’m proud of the kids, they never quit.”
Foran quarterback Jake Kasuba orchestrated the come back in the game’s final 10 minutes.
Down by three scores, Foran went 68 yards in eight plays. Stephen Longley had a tackle-breaking 15-yard run to move the chains to the Warde 37. He caught two passes to bring the ball to the eight, where Kasuba scored on a keeper at the 5:43 mark of the final period. The PAT was no good.
Foran’s defense, led in the second half by Noah Hubler, Andre Vella, Kevin O’Connor, Josh Mixie and Steven Lynch, forced a three-and-out, and the Lions got the ball back on the 21-yard line with 4:26 remaining.
Kasuba found Longley sneaking out of the backfield for a 5-yard gain on the first play of the series.
Longley broke off a 20-yard run to the Warde 20 and three plays later, O’Connor bucked over from a yard out.
Kasuba, who finished the game with 190 yards passing and 109 yards rushing, ran for the two-point conversion with 1:29 on the clock, but Warde’s T.J. Gallagher recovered the onside kick.
Foran was called for 15 penalties and Warde 11.
Brandon Bisack threw for three touchdowns for coach Duncan DellaVolpe’s Mustangs. Bisack connected with Ryan Brown for two scores and found Andrew Girard for another touchdown.
Gallagher vaulted into the end zone from a yard out to stake the Mustangs to a 24-7 lead with 9:40 remaining before Foran rallied.
“Our defense played great for the most part,” DellaVolpe said. “They (Foran) did what we expected. They’re quarterback (Jake Kasuba) is a player. He can throw it. He can run it. He’s an aggressive-type Milford kid.”
Bisack hit Brown on an 11-yard touchdown pass at the 1:38 mark of the first quarter. None of the Mustangs’ four conversion tries were successful.
Joe Potenza caught a 24-yard pass to bring the ball inside Foran territory in the second quarter. Bisack then passed to Girard, who caught the ball inside the 20 and followed a great block from Julius Jones into the end zone to complete the 42-yard hookup with 2:59 left in the first half.
Foran scored on its first possession of the third quarter, with Kasuba keeping the ball for a 13-yard touchdown. Joe Radecki’s conversion kick made it 12-7.
Warde answered, as Bisack piloted the Mustangs on a 65-yard drive capped by a 15-yard touchdown pass to Brown.
Warde went 55 yards to paydirt on its next possession.
“Hats off to Warde they did the job,” Bevino said. “We’ll get healthy (Foran played without standout David McLenithan). We’ve got no excuses. We have enough to win if we play well.”
Foran will play host to West Haven Friday at 7 p.m. The Westies defeated Greenwich High, 35-22, in their first game.