VOORHEESVILLE — Matt Miller missed the miserable first half of a football game the Voorheesville team played on Saturday afternoon.

His teammates were happy he was there at the end.

Miller, who had played in a varsity soccer game in Cohoes earlier in the day, kicked the game-winning field goal with about five minutes left in the fourth quarter to give the Blackbirds a 23-22 win over Granville in a Class C quarterfinal contest.

The Blackbirds will host Schuylerville in a semifinal game on Saturday. Kick-off is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
"Right at the end of my soccer game, I asked my coach if I could leave with my parents," Miller said after the quarterfinal contest. "We flew down the highway; it seemed like it took like 20 minutes. I got here for the start of the second half."

The conditions of the final kick made it a lot more difficult. Not only did Granville call a time-out, but Saturday’s game was played in a steady rain that made for a slick field.
"They called a time-out, trying to get me nervous," Miller said. "I blocked it out. I had the right angle and a good hold."

Miller booted the 27-yard kick and it easily split the uprights to give the Birds their first lead of the game, and eventually the win.
"It was tremendous," Voorheesville Coach Joe Sapienza said. "It was rainy and windy. You have to get the snap and hold, and he had to kick a wet ball. It was nerve-wracking. But he did the same against Canajoharie. He’s so consistent."

Slow start

It was amazing in itself that the Blackbirds had put themselves in position to set up Miller’s kick.

Voorheesville trailed, 14-6, at the end of the first quarter and 22-14 at halftime.

Granville scored the first touchdown of the game on its first possession.

Tom Jackson ran from seven yards to end a drive that featured the running of Jackson and Jake Clippinger.

Voorheesville did come back and got a touchdown on its next possession.

Kurt Hoffart returned the ensuing kickoff from his own 22-yard line to the 48.

Then Justin Lupien ran 21 yards on the first play of the drive to move the ball to the Granville 31-yard line.

After a couple of short runs, Voorheesville quarterback Andy Catellier completed a pass to Nick Duncan that put the ball on the three-yard line.

Three plays later, Catellier found Duncan again, this time in the end zone, for a touchdown.

Duncan made a diving catch in the end zone and pulled the Blackbirds within one point with 1:35 left in the first quarter.

But it didn’t take Granville long to score and take a 14-6 lead.

Five plays after Voorheesville scored, Jackson scored his second touchdown of the game, this time on an 11-yard run. Jackson then kicked his second extra point for the Golden Horde.

Granville took a 22-6 lead with 3:43 left in the second quarter.

Jackson scored again, this time from three yards out. The snap on the extra-point attempt was fumbled and the Horde settled for a 22-6 lead.

Comeback

But the Blackbirds came back with a big score with 1:32 left until halftime.

Voorheesville started a drive on its own 20-yard line and moved the ball, using some strong passing by Catellier.

Catellier completed passes to Tim Robinson, and Nick Duncan on the drive.

Duncan made a big catch on third down and 20 yards after it bounced off teammate Cameron Taylor. The catch moved the ball to the 46-yard line.

Catellier and Duncan hooked up to cap the drive for a 10-yard touchdown.

Catellier completed a pass to Robinson for the two-point conversion and cut the lead to just eight points.
"All the credit to Granville," Catellier said. "They came out here and played hard. They caught us off guard. They remind me of Greenwich. They are the same type team. They like to put a lick on you and run over you.
"We were terrible in the first half," Catellier added. "But we bounced back. That’s how we play. We don’t back down from anybody."
"We didn’t come out ready to play," Sapienza said. "It’s not that we didn’t think Granville was a good team. They got Jackson back and he had not played, I think, in three weeks. He ran for a 150 yards. He had a big day for them.
"Sometimes people like to look at the number next to the school," Sapienza said. "They see a number-one or number-four seed. But I’ve said this all year: There’s not a team in Class C that is not good or not competitive."

Voorheesville cut the lead to just two points with 2:13 left in the third quarter, taking advantage of a big break.

Voorheesville was forced to punt and Nick Duncan booted the ball and it was fumbled by the Granville returner.

Lupien recovered the fumble for Voorheesville at the Granville 10-yard line.

After a five-yard run by Adam Duncan, Catellier connected with Robinson for a touchdown to make the score, 22-20.

The Birds got the ball back in the fourth quarter after a fumble by the Granville punter.

The Birds recovered on the Granville 47-yard line.

Voorheesville then was able to move the ball, including a 14-yard run by Adam Duncan to the 30-yard line.

Catellier completed a pass to Nick Duncan to move the ball to the 16-yard line.

The Blackbirds had the ball at the four-yard line, but a sack of Catellier moved the ball back to the 10-yard line and set up the field-goal attempt.

Granville had one last chance to win, and was moving the ball down the field as time was running out, but a last-second field-goal attempt by Jackson missed and Voorheesville celebrated on its home turf.
"We’re not quitters"

Catellier had one of his best days at quarterback for the Blackbirds. He completed 12 out 23 passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns in sloppy conditions.

Nick Duncan caught nine passes for 119 yards and had two touchdowns. He also made 13 tackles on defense.

Adam Duncan ran for 67 yards on 10 carries.

The Birds also shut out the Golden Horde in the second half.
"They were still able to move the ball on us," Sapienza said. "But we came up with the big plays when we needed it. I really believe the kids can learn from this. We’re not quitters. This is an interesting team. We have young guys and a nice group of seniors. But the young kids contribute, too."