Bruised and bleeding during three fourth-quarter scoring drives,
Marchiol refused to come out of the game and threw two of his three
touchdown passes to pull off one of the most shocking upsets in recent history.
Marchiol, a West Virginia commit, willed his squad to the victory hitting
Nick Switzer with a 22-yard TD pass with eight seconds left and scoring the game-winning 2-point conversion on a scramble left to give the hosts their first lead since the first quarter.
The Huskies got a 46-yard
Matthew Krneta field goal, recovered two onside kicks by
Cooper Leduc and Marchiol found
Michael Masunas and Switzer for TD passes in 65 seconds before Marchiol capped the comeback.
Marchiol was 15 of 22 passing for 140 yards and three scores.
The game appeared well in hand for the Gaels as
William Stallings Jr. put the visitors on his back through the first 47 minutes of action. The three-star back, starting after
Cam Barfield was injured against Lone Peak, carried the ball 24 times for 160 yards and a touchdown.
Hamilton, which fell in last year's Arizona Open Division final, improved to 3-0 with the stunner. On the opening drive, Marchiol gave the Huskies a 7-0 lead following a nine-play, 62-yard drive with a 9-yard TD pass to
Tré Spivey.
But the seventh-ranked Gaels answered on the ensuing drive, the first of 17 unanswered points. On Bishop Gorman's first offensive possession,
Micah Alejado engineered a seven-play, 80-yard scoring drive that featured five running plays capped by a 14-yard run by Stallings.
After allowing the game-opening touchdown, the Bishop Gorman defense forced the Huskies off the field with a three-and-out and the Gaels offense took advantage with a 13-play, clock-bleeding drive that ended with a 25-yard field goal and a 10-7 lead.
The Gorman defense again showed out, nearly forcing a safety with a sack of Marchiol on the 1. The Gaels had six sacks and an interception on the night.
When Alejado and the offense got the ball back, they marched 90 yards in less than four minutes as the sophomore quarterback called his own number and raced into the end zone for a 17-yard score and a 17-7 halftime lead.
Out of halftime, the Gaels looked to have a back-breaking touchdown from
Devon Rice, but the 57-yarder was called back on a penalty. Nevertheless, Alejado led the Gaels on a seven-play drive, but the Huskies held tough with
Tre Tate intercepting the sophomore in the end zone.
Two possessions later, however, Alejado hit
Zachariah Branch on an out-route that the junior wide out turned into a 28 yard pitch-and-catch TD.
Nicco Marchiol led Hamilton to a stunning 25-24 win over No. 7 Bishop Gorman on Friday with an 18-point comeback in the final minute of the game.
File photo by Jack Beasley
