Late field goal sends Knights to senior football final

Next up is a date with the defending champs.

A 25-yard field goal by Kyle Finateri midway through the fourth quarter was the difference as the St. Mary’s Knights squeezed out a 16-14 win over the Superior Heights Steelhawks in semifinal action in the senior high school football loop.

The win sends the Knights into next week’s city final against the Korah Colts.

“We made a lot of mistakes but I’m proud of the guys,” Knights coach Jim Monico said. “We persevered. We played over the mistakes. We made plays when we had to. We’re going to have to be a lot better next week against Korah. If we play like we did today, we won’t be successful, but I think we can get back together and play a better game.”

The Knights feel confident heading into the city final.

“We have to be pretty close to mistake-free,” Monico said. “We have to get a couple breaks and be mistake-free, but if we play our best game, we have a shot.”

A pair of field goals by Gavin Smith gave Superior Heights a 6-0 lead in the opening quarter.

Smith hit a 27-yard field goal 2:28 in to open the scoring and proceeded to hit from 33 yards out later in the frame to make it 6-0 Superior Heights.

Late in the second quarter with the Knights driving, Nick Pagnotta used an 18-yard run to get the ball to the Superior Heights eight-yard line. Two plays later, Pagnotta ran the ball in from the one. The subsequent convert by Finateri gave the Knights a 7-6 lead.

Just under three minutes into the third quarter, Malcolm Boyer picked off a Pagnotta pass and ran it 51 yards for a touchdown. The convert by Smith made the score 13-7 Steelhawks.

Pagnotta then hit Carmen Caputo in an end zone for a 17-yard touchdown pass. The Knights missed the convert on a bad snap, leaving the game tied at 13 in the late stages of the third quarter.

Superior Heights took a 14-13 lead after Smith missed a 24-yard field goal attempt but put it through the end zone for the single point.

Midway through the fourth quarter, the Knights took over possession of the ball deep in Superior Heights territory after a bad snap with the Steelhawks looking to punt on fourth down.

Looking at a third-and-two, Finateri proceeded to hit what would be the game-winning field goal.

On their next drive, Ethan West punted the ball on a third down but recovered the ball for Superior Heights, allowing the Steelhawks to maintain possession but the team couldn’t capitalize.

With 1:57 to go and Superior Heights looking to drive, Seth Roubal intercepted a pass by Evan Johnson to give the Knights the ball back.

On third down with 1:13 to go, Aaron Wheton recovered a punt for the Knights, giving St. Mary’s the ball on the Steelhawks 33 and sealing the win for the Knights.

Pagnotta finished the day eight-for-18 with 98 yards passing and ran the ball 11 times for 45 yards.

Carter Ianni ran the ball 14 times for 53 yards for the Knights while receiver Martin Colicchio caught four passes for 44 yards.

Defensively for the Knights, Carter Bonin has seven tackles, two assisted tackles and a fumble recovery.

Johnson finished the day completing 11 of 24 pass attempts for 165 yards.

Boyer caught three passed for 84 yards for the Steelhawks and had a big day defensively with the interception for a touchdown, a fumble recovery, three batted balls and seven tackles.

Connor Malmloff had four tackles, an assisted tackle and recovered a fumble as well for the Steelhawks.