Palis’ leap allows Garnet Valley to beat Radnor in overtime thriller

RADNOR – When Garnet Valley quarterback Cole Palis got the go-ahead to attempt a two-point conversion in overtime Friday night, he didn’t question the decision. He was willing to do whatever was necessary to get across the goal line and send the Jaguars home undefeated and still alone in first place in the Central League.

Palis lined up under center, received the snap and ran to his right. It was an option play. Palis decided to keep the ball himself, then leaped over the pile and across the goal line.

Garnet Valley was victorious, 29-28, surviving a spirited effort from an excellent Radnor team. GV and Radnor entered the night ranked first and fifth, respectively, in Delaware County.

“We’re designed to read the ends,” Palis said. “If the end goes out, I’m just going to keep it and look to pitch to our running back. But I saw the hole and my linemen did the rest. I just jumped over. There was a little pile, so I knew I had to jump.”

Garnet Valley senior tackle Kyle McCullough had the utmost confidence that Palis would reach paydirt.

“We had no doubt,” McCullough said. “Cole is a great quarterback and I knew he was going to make a great decision. It seems like he’s never wrong, honestly.”

And the loss was about as disappointing for Radnor as one might imagine. Senior quarterback Sean Mullarkey tried to look on the bright side.

“Nobody thought we could hang with these guys, just like nobody thought we could beat Marple, just like nobody thought we could beat Springfield, just like nobody thought we could beat Ridley,” said Mullarkey, who completed 7 of 13 passing attempts for 126 yards and a touchdown. “We’d obviously love to win but… we still have a goal in our mind and that’s to win a district championship. This doesn’t stop us.

“It was gutsy by them (to go for the two-point conversion), but that’s why they’re a really good program. I wouldn’t say it’s fun right now, but we played really well. It was cool to see the community have Radnor football’s back.”

GV coach Mike Ricci wanted to end the game in the first OT. Radnor had scored first when Taylor Margolis rumbled across the goal line for his third touchdown of the night. Margolis, who also excelled at linebacker, received most of the carries in place of Matt Cohen, the third-leading rusher in the county who did not play due to injury.

Ricci’s thought process was simple: Don’t give Radnor another chance.

“At the end, we were having a hard time stopping Radnor so we didn’t want to continue the overtime. We just tried to end it,” he said. “We felt like we had a good play call. Cole made a great play to get in the end zone.”

GV had a chance to win it in regulation. After Danny Brady’s scoring scamper tied the game at 21, Radnor (6-2, 5-2) fumbled the ball away on its next offensive play. Garnet Valley (8-0, 7-0) drove the ball to the 1 with eight seconds to go. Colin Robinson (153 yards, two touchdowns) was stopped a half-yard short of the end zone. Ricci could’ve called upon kicker Bryce Stansfield for a field goal, but he felt strongly that his offense deserved to win this game.

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Cole Palis celebrates after converting a two-point run in overtime to lift Garnet Valley to a 29-28 overtime victory against Radnor. (PETE BANNA/DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA)