East/WOIS scores 17 unanswered, knocks off Monroe

By PAUL GOTHAM

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — In a matchup pitting a pair of reigning state semifinalists, it was fitting that both defenses proved stingy and the game came down to the last play.

Damari Green and Jeremiah Tucker both scored rushing touchdowns in the second half as East/WOIS erased an early deficit and went on to beat host Monroe, 17-14 in Section V Football action, Saturday.

Tucker slipped through the line and broke a tackle downfield before scampering along the left sideline on a 54-yard jaunt that gave East/WOIS its first lead of the game with 11:16 remaining in the fourth quarter.

“We finally started executing, locking in and making plays on offense,” said East/WOIS co-head coach Steve Flager. “It was a great team win. I told them ‘No one is going to shine in this game. It’s going to be about the team. We just got to get it done that way.’ They bought in.”

Both second-half scores coming on the ground were part of an offense that ran 23 plays over the final 24 minutes of action. Most of those came out of a Wildcat formation with Green, Tucker, Anthony Hampton and Tyler Benjamin taking direct snaps. Only once did the Eagles go to the air during the third and fourth quarters.

VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM JEROME DAVIS. 

“That was the game plan the whole game,” Flagler said. “Early on, we were just getting behind the sticks too much. We couldn’t go anywhere.”

After falling behind 14-0, Yusuf Abdi got East/WOIS on the scoreboard with a 30-yard field goal with :17 seconds remaining in the second quarter.

East/WOIS received the kickoff to start the third quarter and needed six plays to get into Monroe territory. Green scored on a 36-yard run.

“We started rolling a little bit at the end of the second quarter,” Flagler said. “I think we found that if we keep doing this, we’re going to wear this team out. Our guys were confident at halftime.”

Second down from the 33, ⁦@EastFootball585⁩ line gets movement up front. Da’Mari Green follows for six. PAt is good. ⁦@FootballJMonroe⁩ 14-10 7:31 to go in the third. pic.twitter.com/uXkhiYcGWl

— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 28, 2024

Fourth down from midfield: Jeremiah Tucker coming into your screen gives ⁦@EastFootball585⁩ its first lead of the game at 17-14. ⁦@SecVFootball⁩ pic.twitter.com/ApYa2bHtt7

— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 28, 2024

The Eagles’ defense allowed just one touchdown and held Monroe 33 points under its season average of 47 per game. The 14 points represented the lowest offensive output for the Redjackets since a 14-6 win over Health Sciences in the 2023 NYS Class B Far West Regional.

Monroe’s Messiah Hampton started the scoring with a 68-yard punt return. Terrell “Pooty” Cunningham Jr. later found Luis Falu in the back of the end zone on 20-yard strike after Monroe recovered an East/WOIS fumble from that spot.

The second score came with 7:03 left in the second quarter.

East/WOIS set the tone on defense when the Eagles held Monroe to a three-and-out on the first possession of the game.

Twice East/WOIS stopped Monroe on fourth down in the second half.

“Understand your assignment, do your job and shut them out,” said East co-head coach James Vann. “It was one of those things. We know what we had to do. We stopped the run like we did. We did the job.”

The loss for Monroe was the first to a Section V team since Batavia beat the Redjackets 14-8 in the 2022 Class B championship game.

The buildup to the game added to the drama between the two Rochester City Athletic Conference foes.

“There was a lot of talk all week,” Vann said. “When the little bros. get out of pocket, big bros. step up and put them in their place.”

Senior linebacker Anthony Hampton led the East/WOIS defense with 13 tackles and three sacks.

“We knew we were more physical than them,” said Hampton who was named Defensive MVP of the game. “We are too physical, way too physical.”

Junior defensive back Kendric Jackson drew the assignment of going one-on-one with Monroe’s Messiah Hampton, the junior receiver who has offers from Michigan, Ohio State, Syracuse and Pittsburgh among other schools.

“Kendric Jackson played amazing,” Vann said. “Messiah’s a big task. There are a lot of guys trying to tackle him. Kendric stay focused, locked in and did his job. That’s all you can ask for.”

Hampton, the Offensive MVP of the game, finished with seven catches for 71 yards, but Jackson limited his big-play impact on the game.

“I was thinking I had to lock in,” Jackson said. “I can’t get beat over the top. I can’t afford any of that. I’m just glad this worked out.

“I’m so proud of my defense. We did an amazing job. I knew it was going to be like this. I knew it was going to be a hard game. I’m just proud of my defense.”

East/WOIS improved to 3-1 with its third straight win. The Eagles opened the season with a 32-0 loss to Christian Brothers Academy (III).

“Everybody thought we fell off because we lost to CBA (Section III), the best team in the state,” Anthony Hampton said.

Tucker, named the game MVP, finished with 147 yards on 18 carries to go with seven tackles on the defensive side.

Monroe fell to 3-1 with the loss.

“Sometimes, it’s best to get that loss early. I’d rather have this feeling in September than to feel this way in November,” said Monroe head coach Terrell Cunningham, Sr. “It was a good team, a good opponent. We went out there we kinda gave them a little bit.”

“Pooty” Cunningham completed 14-of-18 passes for 175 yards. Tahj Mullins rushed for 65 yards on 14 carries. Jermaine Montgomery led the Monroe defense with 12 tackles and one sack. Jovon Bennett had eight tackles and a sack. Christien Franklin accounted for 11 tackles.

Monroe had a chance to win the game with a play from the 41-yard line, but Cunningham’s pass on the final play of the game fell to the turf in the end zone.

“It won’t happen twice,” Cunningham said of the loss. “For us, it’s another game. We are building a culture and the program that we have. We’re everybody’s Super Bowl, everybody’s championship game. At the end of the day for us, it’s just another game.”

The road doesn’t get any easier for Monroe which will travel to face Canandaigua (4-0) next Friday.

“We’ll take this, and we’ll learn from it,” Cunningham said. “We’ll get back and get laser-focused and get prepared for Canandaigua.”

East advanced to the NYS Class A semifinals before falling to Whitesboro (III). Monroe lost to Maine-Endwell (IV) in the Class B final four.

Both teams are in Class A for this season.