By David Fierro
High school football players usually remember their first touchdown at the varsity level and Greenwich High School sophomore Noah Park certainly experienced a memorable moment Tuesday night when he reached the end zone for the first time in his Cardinals career.
Then, if that wasn’t significant enough, he added two more touchdowns, giving Greenwich exactly what it needed to overtake Stamford in the quarterfinal-round of the CIAC Class LL Tournament.
Park scored three touchdowns for second-seeded Greenwich, which scored 26 unanswered second-half points in its 47-21 win over seventh-seeded Stamford in the Class LL quarterfinals at blustery Cardinal Stadium. With the triumph the Cardinals (10-1) advanced to Sunday’s 12:30 p.m. Class LL Tournament semifinals, where they will host third-seeded West Haven. The Cardinals are the defending Class LL state champions.
West Haven earned a spot in the semifinals by defeating sixth-seeded New Britain, 28-14. Also on Tuesday, top-seeded Staples edged Fairfield Prep in the Class LL quarterfinals, 13-12, setting up a semifinal-round matchup against fifth-seeded Southington – a 47-20 winner over No. 4 Manchester.
Against a strong Stamford squad which was making its first appearance in the state playoffs since the 1995 season, Greenwich displayed its balance on offense and produced a stellar defensive effort – especially in the second half.
Senior quarterback Rocco Grillo completed 15 of 21 passes for 348 yards and threw three touchdown passes for the Cardinals, who were tied against the Black Knights, 21-21, at halftime. Park had three receptions for 119 yards and two touchdowns, while senior wide receiver Gavyn Gennarelli caught a team-high seven passes for 130 yards, including a touchdown to help spark Greenwich’s offense.
Ian Kim, a senior running back, powered Greenwich’s ground game, rushing for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries against the visiting Black Knights.
The Cardinals took the lead for good on Stamford Tuesday night on the first play of the second half. Grillo dropped back to pass, had plenty of time to throw and competed a pass over the middle to Park, who got behind the defense. Park caught the pass near midfield and ran the rest of the way to the end zone. Senior Erick Perino kicked the extra point and the Cardinals seized a 28-21 lead just 11 seconds into the third quarter.
“We were coming out of the half, our coach called a fake screen, he told me I had a post, I saw the opening and I just took it,” Park said of his go-ahead touchdown reception. “Rocco threw a great ball and I took it all the way.”
Indeed the Cardinals’ touchdown to start the third quarter signaled a prelude of what was to come in the second half.
“It was definitely a big play, especially a tie game like we were in,” Grillo said. “We were tied last time and we came out sluggish but this time we came out with that big play and I think it set the tone for the second half.”
Grillo was impressed with how Park stepped up and rose to the challenge of an increased role in the postseason matchup.
“We’re down one of our star, starting receivers, Ryan McBreairty, and Noah came out and played his game,” Grillo said. “He played his role, did what he could and it really shows.”
Stamford coach Donny Panapada, who has done an exceptional job of turning the program around, reflected on Greenwich’s first touchdown of the second half, which proved to be one of the game’s turning points.
“It was a hell of a first half, then we come out and the first offensive play of the third quarter and we blow a coverage and give up 70-yard play, or whatever it was and it snowballed from there,” Panapada said. “It wasn’t energy or effort, it was execution.”
Senior linebacker Sebastian Parra and senior defensive lineman Yahcere McGhee combined to take down Black Knights junior quarterback Ejai Presley on the ensuing possession, forcing the visitors to punt.
The Cardinals then added on to their lead, courtesy of a 10-yard scoring run by Kim with 1:21 left, making it 35-21. Gennarelli kept the scoring drive going, catching a key pass from Grillo for a first down.
“It’s amazing to get our first playoff win,” Gennarelli said. “Coming into the week, we knew Stamford was a tough team, they played us tough last time, so we schemed them up pretty well and just played our game today.”
In September’s regular season matchup between Greenwich and Stamford, the game was tied at 14-14 in the second half, before the Cards scored two straight touchdowns to register a 28-14 victory. For the season, Gennarelli leads the Cardinals in receiving yards with 585 and ranks second on the squad in receptions (42).’
“We were high and flying and everyone was making plays,” Gennarelli said of the Cards’ quarterfinal-round performance. “Noah, Ian Kim, the run game was going, the pass game was going.”
Greenwich coach Anthony Morello was pleased with how his team responded when Stamford scored.
“Offensively we felt that we were going to have more success tonight than we had in Week 2,” Morello said referring to the Cards’ regular season game versus Stamford. “They just stayed the course and whenever things got a little trepid we seemed to make that comeback and overcome it.”
Grillo scrambled for a 15-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter and Kim added reached the end zone on a 9-yard run in the final quarter to seal the Cards’ scoring. Meanwhile, Greenwich’s defense posted a shutout in the second half, after Stamford effectively moved the ball, behind Presley’s passing and some solid runs by senior Camron Jean Pierre in the opening half. The Cardinals were coming off a 24-13 Thanksgiving Day loss to visiting rival Staples.
“I thought our defense played incredibly well in the second half,” Morello, whose Cardinals defeated Fairfield Prep for the 2022 Class LL championship. “The first half we kind of bled over a bit from our Staples game. You can’t miss tackles, we need to be swarming to the ball and I saw a lot of Stamford Knights swarming to our running backs and I saw a lot of our defenders in space trying to make a play by themself without the calvary coming.”
“So, we really got on them at halftime and reminded them that there’s nothing to leave in the tank in the playoffs,” Morello continued. “You have to leave it all on the field and you could see in the second half that we were getting hats on the ball on every play.”
McGhee and fellow seniors John McHugh and Logan Jozwiak paced Greenwich’s defensive line, while seniors John Insinga, Sebastian Parra and Jaden Scott led the linebacker corps. Senior Nick Aravides, junior Jack Carroll and junior Noah Steele were solid in coverage in the secondary against the Black Knights.
Stamford (7-4) quickly went ahead 7-0, thanks to Alijza Harris. The junior caught the game’s opening kickoff, ran to his right and sprinted all the way down the right sideline for a 95-yard touchdown 16 seconds into the first half. Jack Solomita added the PAT and the Black Knights held a 7-0 lead.
“It was a tough way to start you are immediately in a 7-0 hole,” Morello noted.
Greenwich responded on its first possession, which concluded with Grillo completing a 17-yard touchdown pass to Park with 7:50 to go in the first quarter, evening the score at 7-7.
“My first touchdown, I had a crossing route over the middle and Rocco found me in the end zone,” Park said. “They put up a great fight. We prepared for them really well and we came into the game very prepared.”
Park took a pitch from Grillo and dashed into the end zone for a 2-yard touchdown run at the 4:25 mark of the second quarter, putting the home team up, 14-7.
“Noah is a really good talent,” Morello said. “I’m really excited about him, he’s a sophomore, so he’s got a great future with us and he was able to help us on the defensive side. Certainly, his contributions on offense tonight can’t go unnoticed and we’re fortunate to have him for the rest of the way.”
After Greenwich took a 14-7 lead, the Black Knights quickly responded.
Presley threw a perfectly placed scoring strike to Cam Coard with 1:38 still left in the first quarter. The PAT was partially blocked, so GHS held a slim 14-13 edge. Grillo threw one of his best passes of the game with 5:11 to play in the second quarter, hitting Gennarelli in stride for a 55-yard pass play resulting in a touchdown and giving the Cardinals a 21-13 advantage.
“It was third and long and told Rocc, look my way I’m going to be open and there I was open,” Gennarelli said. “I almost dropped it, but it doesn’t go on the stat sheet as almost, but it does count as a catch and I was able to score.”
The visitors knotted the score when Jean Pierre showed his speed by turning the corner for a 10-yard touchdown run around the left side. Senior JJ Salvatore caught the ensuing 2-point conversion pass from Presley, tying the score at 21-21 with only 47 seconds to go in the second quarter.
“We got behind and our kids responded, we bounced back,” Panapada said. “We were able to tie it up going into halftime. Ejai is tremendous. He is a competitor, as long as we have that guy we have a shot to win any game.”
