Big plays by Aquinas too much for Brookfield

November 9, 2013 at 12:04a.m.

By brandon judeh

BROOKFIELD

Brookfield was making its third consecutive appearance in the Division VI playoffs and was looking to build off of last season’s regional final run.

But it wasn’t to be.

Key turnovers early and a 27–0 second-half run by Louisville St. Thomas Aquinas helped the Knights defeat the Warriors, 47–14, on Friday night at George Nicholas Field.

Perhaps the biggest momentum shift came late in the first quarter when the Knights held a 6-0 lead.

Brookfield sophomore quarterback Augustus Necastro ran to his right and looked to pitch the ball to senior tailback Joe Clark, but he wasn’t there.

Frankie DiMarzio picked the ball up and ran it 40 yards for a touchdown and a 13-0 lead.

“That play hurt, but we had way to many penalties tonight and everything seemed to go their way,” Brookfield head coach Randy Clark said. “Hat’s off to them. They are a great team.”

The Warriors (8-3) kept it close in the second quarter and made a bit of a comeback by pulling a trick play.

Necastro pitched to Clark, who then found Marc Kraml for a touchdown.

Brookfield cut the score to 20-14 after an 11-yard touchdown run by Clark, but an interception in Knights territory killed a late Warriors drive and the score held true at the half.

“That interception was big,” Randy Clark said. “We thought we had a guy open, but they made a great play on defense to get the turnover. It was a big momentum swing.”

Things imploded for Brookfield in the second half as the Knights offense asserted its dominance.

“We played fairly well in the first half, but in the second half we made some major mistakes and they made some big plays and did a great job at slowing us down,” Randy Clark said.

St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Tim Budd says he had one goal in mind at halftime for his team: stop Joe Clark.

“I challenged my defense in the locker room, because No. 1 broke some big runs in the first half, so I told them they needed to get in the backfield and knock him down,” Budd said.

The Knights (9-2) were able to contain Clark in the second half, but he ended up with 137 yards on 19 carries and added a score in his final game.

“My seniors had a tremendous career here, they were the first group to ever make the playoffs for three straight seasons,” Randy Clark said. “I’m so proud of these seniors and all that they have accomplished in their time here.”

Knights quarterback Anthony Moeglin threw for 217 yards and four scores, including touchdown passes of 68 and 61 yards.

Wide receiver Sam Pusateri finished with 104 yards and three touchdown catches and Ja’Lon Humphries had 129 yards on the ground.

Necastro finished the night with 130 yards passing. Brookfield senior R.J. Leon led the team with 54 yards receiving.