2-point gamble pays off as No. 2 Montour tops No. 1 Aliquippa, earns Parkway Conference title
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Saturday, October 19, 2024 | 12:05 AM
Montour’s AJ Alston celebrates after defeating Aliquippa, 36-35, on Friday.
Montour’s Caden Halajcio scores in the final minute against Aliquippa on Friday.
Montour’s AJ Alston (6) is mobbed by teammates after catching a 2-point conversion in the final minute against Aliquippa on Friday.
Montour quarterback Trey Hopper celebrates after defeating Aliquippa, 36-35, on Friday.
Montour’s Daniel Batch catches a touchdown pass between Aliquippa’s Larry Moon and Arison Walker on Friday.
Montour’s Daniel Batch celebrates his touchdown catch against Aliquippa on Friday.
Montour’s Daniel Batch returns a fumble for a touchdown during the third quarter against Aliquippa on Friday.
Montour quarterback Trey Hopper throws a pass against Aliquippa on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Montour’s AJ Alston celebrates his touchdown catch with Daniel Batch during the second quarter against Aliquippa on Friday.
Montour’s Kaleb Platz celebrates a tackle for loss against Aliquippa on Friday.
Montour’s Kaleb Platz scores against Aliquippa on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Montour’s Kaleb Platz celebrates after scoring against Aliquippa on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Montour’s Caden Halajcio fends off Aliquippa’s Akiva Woods on a first down run late in the fourth quarter Friday.
Montour’s James Bundridge catches a long pass down the side line past Aliquippa’s Raymond Miller on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
The Montour student section brings the noise against Aliquippa on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Montour players celebrates after defeating Aliquippa, 36-35, on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Aliquippa’s Arison Walker scores during the fourth quarter against Montour on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Aliquippa’s Arison Walker celebrates his first touchdown with Qalil Goode during the fourth quarter against Montour on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Aliquippa’s Tikey Hayes eludes Montour’s AJ Alston on a touchdown run on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Aliquippa’s Arison Walker catches a touchdown pass next to Montour’s AJ Alston during the fourth quarter on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Aliquippa’s Arison Walker celebrates his second touchdown with Daiveon Taylor during the fourth quarter against Montour on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Aliquippa’s SaNir Brooks scores his first touchdown against Montour on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Robinson.
Montour wasn’t playing for overtime.
When running back Caden Halajcio scored with 31 seconds left Friday night to put the Spartans within one point of Aliquippa, there was no debate about what to do next.
“Coach Lou huddled us up and said, ‘I put all of my trust in you,’” said senior quarterback Trey Hopper, who completed a two-point pass to AJ Alston that let No. 2 Montour defeat No. 1 Aliquippa, 36-35, and claim at least a share of the Parkway Conference title.
The winning drive started with 2:08 left and covered 64 yards in eight plays. It was bolstered by a 15-yard late-hit penalty against Aliquippa and ended with Halajcio’s 2-yard touchdown run.
“When we got the ball back with two-something left, I said, if we’re fortunate enough to get in the end zone, we’re going to go for the win,” Montour coach Lou Cerro said. “If we get it in, we win. If we don’t, we don’t.”
Montour leads Aliquippa 36-35 with 31 seconds left after this 2-point pass pic.twitter.com/xmlpTY7zq1
— Chris Harlan (@CHarlan_Trib) October 19, 2024
Montour (8-0, 4-0) will finish atop the conference standings for the first time since 2012. They’d lost seven in a row in this series over the past six years and hadn’t beaten the Quips since 1991.
Cerro, Montour’s coach since 2005, called Friday’s comeback a “top five” win in his coaching career.
“Two great football teams,” he said. “They’re Aliquippa. It’s a tribute to our kids that we kept fighting and fighting. … I wouldn’t be surprised if we see them again.”
Montour can win the conference title outright with a victory next week over West Allegheny. A Spartans loss could create a three-way tie with West Allegheny and Aliquippa.
The Parkway loss was Aliquippa’s first since joining the Class 4A conference in 2020, breaking a 27-game streak. The Quips (5-2, 3-1) had won four consecutive conference titles.
“We’re going to be all right,” Aliquippa coach Vashawn Patrick said. “It’s a long season. I like the passion that they ended the game with. I know they’re upset but we’ve got to regroup and think about Ambridge next week.”
Aliquippa took a 35-28 lead with 9:45 left in the fourth quarter on a pair of touchdown passes from Marques Council to Arison Walker just 74 seconds apart. The Quips’ defense tried to keep the seven-point lead but gave Montour one too many chances.
Trailing by a touchdown, Montour had four possessions in the final 10 minutes. The first three resulted in a punt, an interception and a failed fourth-down conversion.
Each time, Montour’s defense made a stand of its own. With 2:08 left, Montour got the ball back on its own 36-yard line after a fourth down sack by Nino DiMichele, setting up the Spartans’ winning drive.
“We got our butts whooped by them three years in a row, the three years I’ve been here,” said Hopper, who entered Friday as the WPIAL’s leading passer. “We knew we had to get the job done and get the win.”
Hopper completed 19 of 32 passes for 203 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Halajcio rushed 10 times for 61 yards, including 23 yards on the winning drive.
Alston (11 yards) and Daniel Batch (24 yards) each caught touchdowns for Montour, while Halajcio (2 yards) and Kaleb Platz (4 yards) had rushing touchdowns. Platz also made two interceptions on defense, and Batch returned a fumble 7 yards for a touchdown.
Montour led 21-15 at halftime and 28-21 in the third quarter.
Aliquippa running back Tikey Hayes rushed for 220 yards on 20 carries, including an 80-yard touchdown in the first quarter. The Penn State recruit was sidelined for his team’s final three possessions with an injury.
Quips sophomore Sa’Nir Brooks scored two touchdowns on nine carries.
Aliquippa scored on three of its first four possession after halftime, but the Quips’ offense stalled later in the fourth. Their final four possessions led to two punts, a failed fourth-down conversion and an interception.
“We didn’t get first downs, and we got penalties that put us behind the sticks,” Patrick said. “We’ve just got to do a better job of executing at the end.”
Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.
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