Vaccaro’s late fumble return TD caps No. 7 Wall’s wild win over No. 6 St. John Vianney

On its journey to re-establish itself as a championship contender, Wall took a major step forward with a dramatic victory over St. John Vianney on Friday night.

With the Crimson Knights clinging to a four-point lead and the Lancers on the cusp of dealing them a crushing defeat, Wall delivered a clutch defensive play when senior defensive back Derrick Boss forced a fumble and senior outside linebacker Joe Vaccaro scooped up the loose ball and returned it 90 yards for a touchdown, sending No. 7 Wall to an improbable 36-26 Shore Conference Class C North victory over No. 6 St. John Vianney.

The Crimson Knights (4-0, 2-0) are now in sole possession of first place in the division.

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Wall had taken a 29-26 lead with 5:24 left when senior wide receiver Tony Credle took a swing pass and weaved his way through the St. John Vianney defense for a 58-yard touchdown reception from sophomore quarterback Franny Scaramellino. Wall then came up with a fourth down stop at its own 41 with 2:34 left and had the chance to close out the game with a first down, but St. John Vianney returned the favor to force a punt. The ensuing snap sailed over punter Heath Reinhardt’s head and toward the end zone, and in his haste to escape danger he tried a desperation pass that was intercepted by Vianney’s Dirk Hohenkirk and returned to the Wall 7-yard line.

Wall’s defense held on first and second down to bring up third-and-goal from the 5-yard line. Boss got to the mesh point on the handoff between St. John Vianney quarterback Zach LaBarca and running back Adbul Turay and the ball popped free where Vaccaro picked it up and raced 90 yards for the touchdown to seal Wall’s best win under third-year head coach Ed Gurrieri.

“I told our kids we have to learn how to win and finish games, and I think we’re starting to get there,” Gurrieri said. “Tonight, we learned how to win.”

Reinhardt opened the scoring with a 25-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter and then caught a 55-yard touchdown pass from Scramellino early in the second quarter to put Wall ahead, 14-0. A safety on a punt snap that went out of the end zone made it 16-0 less than two minutes later.

A 1-yard touchdown run by Turay got St. John Vianney on the board to make it 17-6 but Wall answered when senior Mason Adam returned the kickoff for a touchdown with the help of Luke Davis. The ball was punched out around the 3-yard line and bounced into the end zone where Davis pounced on it to secure the touchdown.

St. John Vianney closed the gap to 22-14 when LaBarca connected with Adam Urs on a touchdown and then tossed the 2-point conversion pass to Nico Aquilone. A blocked punt led to a 37-yard touchdown run by Turay but the two-point attempt was unsuccessful, leaving Wall ahead, 22-20, with 6:01 left in the third quarter. The Lancers took the lead on a 7-yard touchdown run by Turay, setting up the crazy conclusion.

Wall football was on top of the Shore Conference in 2019 and 2020 when it went 19-1 over a two-year span with an NJSIAA sectional title and the unofficial Shore Conference championship during the shortened 2020 season. A hazing scandal rocked the community during the 2021 season and resulted in sweeping changes to the football program and athletic department. Wall tabbed Gurrieri, the former longtime head coach at Manalapan, to lead the Crimson Knights through their rebuild and, after consecutive 4-7 seasons, they have broken through with a 4-0 start to the 2024 season.

“I don’t know about the whole ‘we’re back’ stuff right now but our kids believe now that we’re good enough and that we know how to win,” Gurrieri said. “Moving forward, every game is a big game, and that’s what you want to be a part of.”

Wall now controls its destiny in Class C North with games remaining against Manalapan (2-2) and Holmdel (3-1) and then Manasquan (2-2) on Thanksgiving. There is still a long way to go, but Wall appears back on track to retake its place as one of the best teams in the Shore.

“The community was out and the place was rocking tonight,” Gurrieri said. “We couldn’t be prouder of the support we are getting.”