BRADFORD, Pa. – With his team down a point and time running out in the third quarter, Benji Bauer looked like he was going to take a handoff and go outside.
But at the last moment, the Eisenhower graduate saw an opening up the middle, stopped on a dime, cut back to the inside, and went 27-yard to give Pennsylvania the lead for good, 28-21, in what became a 34-27 win for the Keystone State over New York in the 49th edition of the Big 30 All-Star Charities Classic at Parkway Field in Bradford.
Pennsylvania Football News’ Shane Lux caught the play on X (formerly known as Twitter).
After New York fumbles the ensuing kickoff – PA scores two plays later – Benji Bauer 27 yd run – PA now leads 28-21 after 3 pic.twitter.com/0uuYKu2XEC
— Shane Lux (@PFN_Luxy) August 6, 2023
Bauer’s score came after New York fumbled a kickoff moments after Port Allegany graduate Blaine Moses scored on a 5-yard run, his second touchdown of the game, with 22 seconds left in the third quarter to get Pennsylvania within a point, 21-20.
While New York, which led 21-12 at halftime, got within a point, 28-27, on a 59-yard Giancarlo Nuzzo to Kyle Stover touchdown pass with 12:58 to play, Pennsylvania never relinquished that lead.
The Keystoners got some breathing room with just over six minutes left by Kane graduate Ricky Zampogna scored his second touchdown of the game on an 11-yard run to set the final score.
Zampogna’s first score was also Pennsylvania’s first score and came 2:02 into the second quarter on a 6-yard run that cut an early 7-0 New York lead to 7-6.
New York went up 7-0 later in the first quarter when Christian Swalcy scored the first of two touchdowns on a 1-yard run.
Stover scored his first touchdown on a 4-yard run about six minutes after Zampogna’s first touchdown to put New York ahead, 14-6.
Pennsylvania looked like it had gotten within a score at halftime when Moses, the YDL Sports Network Jim Kelly District 9 Player of the Year in 2022, scored his first touchdown of the game on a 15-yard pass from St. Marys graduate Charlie Coudriet to get the Keystone State back within two, 14-12, with 1:12 to play in the opening half.
But New York found some magic on the final play of the opening 30 minutes when Swalcy hauled down a 16-yard pass from Nuzzo to give the Empire State the 21-12 halftime advantage.
