Fallon snaps 20-game losing streak against Wooster

Lester de Braga has coached his sons in baseball and football. As a father, he witnessed Greenwave history Friday as Trent, and then Trevor, led Fallon to its only touchdown against Wooster in the fourth quarter of a nonleague football game.

But the heroics were not done yet. With time expiring, Tyler Reibsamen stretched his arms to block Alex Gonzalez's potential game-winning field goal to preserve Fallon's 8-7 win at the Ed Arciniega Athletic Complex.

"Great athletes came to play," Lester de Braga said after the game as he was leaving the bleachers. "I knew they had a great kicker within the 25, but the block was awesome."

With the win, Fallon snapped a 20-game losing streak to Wooster. Since Wooster opened in 1962, Fallon has never defeated the Colts in football.

"That big sigh (at the end of the game) was explosive. It's an indication of how much pressure has been put on these athletes to raise the bar," coach Ray Holladay said. "This is a historical win, a big win for the season. It's a bigger win for the school and community.

"I congratulated the kids because they just made history."

Holladay said there was no more emphasis made on this game than the season opener.

Fallon mistakes during the first three quarters caused the Wave to squander several scoring opportunities, and an error near the goal line led Wooster to punch in its only touchdown in the second quarter.

But Greenwave fans will be talking about the "drive" that covered 80 yards in seven plays.

The Wave received a break when Wooster's Ryan Willaman broke up the middle for 33 yards and an apparent score. Before the shifty 5-foot-5, 150-pound back could reach the end zone, he fumbled the ball away.

Fallon then took possession on its own 20 yard line. Trevor de Braga carried the ball twice for 10 yards and a first down. Anthony Woller took a pitch to the right side from quarterback Dexter Daum and scrambled down the right side for a 15-yard gain.

Reserve running back Greg Heck carried the ball for the first time and picked up another 15 yards to give the Wave a first down on the Wooster 40.

On a play-action pass, Daum saw Trent de Braga streaking down the Greenwave sidelines, and the Fallon junior leaped up to haul in the pass, falling down on the 6.

"I told Dexter to throw the ball because I would be open," de Braga said. "I made one of those catches in amp, and I knew where the ball would be."

One play later, Trevor de Braga ran up the middle, spun around Wooster's James Nava and jogged in for the touchdown.

The Wave opted to run for a 2-point conversion. Trevor de Braga took the handoff, looked to his left and entered the end zone to give Fallon an 8-7 lead.

Until the second half, Holladay said his players were afraid to make a mistake and lose.

"In the third quarter, we were still tight, but we began to gain momentum in running the ball. Trevor did a great job of running the ball, and Trent made a great catch."

Trevor de Braga, who rushed for 95 yards, gained most of his yards on counters. In the fourth quarter, de Braga had to adjust his route because Wooster changed its defense.

But de Braga credited the offensive line for readjusting.

"The offensive line pulled it together," de Braga said. "I ran the counter, and the line had a lot of pulls."

De Braga said once Wooster began keying on the counter and outside, he began to run up the middle.

Both teams traded possessions before the Colts took over for one last time on their own 18.

Quarterback Matt Trabert relied on Eric Marshall's running and timely catches from Jamar Gray to reach the Fallon 43-yard line with 16 seconds remaining in the game.

After some confusion in which the clock ran down to 10 seconds, referees had the clock re-set to 18 seconds.

Trabert threw two incomplete passes before Gonzalez attempted his 45-yard field goal.

The Colts' only touchdown came in the second quarter with 7:08 left before halftime.

Fallon had the ball on its own 10. There was miscommunication on the first-down play, and Fallon fumbled the ball. The ball dropped to the ground and stayed there until Wooster recovered it on the 1.

Willaman then rolled to the left side and scored on the first play. Gonzalez kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead.

Daum finished the game by completing 3 of 9 passes for 74 yards. Joe Don Baker had a 34-yard catch in the first half.

Marshall carried the ball 19 times for 71 yards. Willaman, though, led Wooster with 91 yards.

Holladay said the win was big in many ways. He said the defense played well, and the offense began to click in the second half.

Yet, the mistakes have to be eliminated.

"We needed some confidence with the win), but we still had that deer-in-the-headlights look," he said.

Greenwave reaction

Senior tight end Ryan McCormick had heard stories of how Wooster dominated Fallon in the 1980s.

His brother, Tom, played for Fallon in the late 1980s, but the Wave could never figure out the Wooster mystique.

After Fallon's win Friday night, McCormick said the final score was great.

"It feels good doing something he didn't do,"McCormick said.

Assistant coach Brooke Hill quarterbacked Fallon in 1989 when the Wave played Wooster twice, once in the regular season and the second in the playoffs.

Wooster defeated Fallon, 20-0, in the playoffs to continued its march to another state title.

"It feels good, but things have changed since 1989,"Hill said. "We needed to win this one, but it wasn't pretty. The kids played with passion."

Another assistant coach, Lawrence Mori, played against Wooster and has also coached against the Colts.

"When we scored the touchdown and got the 2-point conversion, they (the players) smelled blood. They knew they had it."