North Warren Wins in Final Seconds…Again
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Angelo Fluri escapes the grasp of the Boonton Bombers.
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The Patriots of North Warren marked their second last-minute victory of the season over Boonton on Sept. 30, bringing them to a 3-2 record.
The 26-21 North Warren win came after a touchdown by each team to start the contest that you would missed if you were having trouble getting into a parking space. After a 35-yard run by Boonton to score just over a minute into the game, North Warren answered less than a minute later with a 35-yard touchdown pass from Jared Van Valkenburg to Craig Shipps.
North Warren opened up a 20-7 lead and held onto it deep into the fourth quarter when Boonton climbed back to take a 21-20 lead with four minutes to go.
The turning point came earlier in the fourth quarter. Leading 20-14, the Patriots were poised to score six from four yards out when running back Alex Diaz fumbled in the end zone. The Bombers converted that miscue into a touchdown and extra point for a one-point lead.
On their next possession, Diaz, who had 111 yards on 22 carries for the night, caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from Van Valkenburg to regain the lead with 48 seconds.
“You know, we, we talked about it all week,” head coach Gene Fluri said after the game. “Hey guys, it’s going to be a true test. You have to be disciplined because they’re very disciplined.”
After the Diaz fumble, Fluri said he told his team to move on, it was in the past.
“So the kids came back,” he said, with Diaz demonstrating just how quickly they can recover.
Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer
Joe was lured out of retirement by the opportunity to be a part of the Ridge View Echo. During a decades-long career in publishing and journalism, he has covered government on many levels from local school boards to the United States Supreme Court.
Along the way, Joe has worked at American Lawyer Magazine, The National Law Journal and The Record among other publications, and as the Press Officer of Columbia Law School. His work has been recognized with several first place awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the New Jersey Press Association.
Being part of the Ridge View Echo brings Joe back to his roots and the kind of news coverage he loves: Telling the stories of people and local communities as well as keeping an eye on how their money is spent by their government officials.
Joe lives in Blairstown with his wife Rose, the founder of Quilting for a Cause, and their two wiener dogs. He is an artist in his spare time.
