Late Scoring Pass by Palisades’ Koral Sinks Chatsworth

Chatsworth High discovered firsthand why Palisades quarterback David Koral leads the state in passing.

Koral threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Ziegler with six seconds left to give the No. 2-seeded Dolphins a 49-42 victory over the No. 7 Chancellors in a City Invitational quarterfinal game Wednesday night at Palisades.

Chatsworth (4-8) fell behind, 21-0, early in the second quarter but rallied to tie the score, 35-35, midway through the fourth quarter on a 70-yard touchdown run by Samuel Wesley and a two-point conversion pass from Matt Cassel to Lucius Duper.

Wesley rushed for 290 yards and four touchdowns in 26 carries, including a 40-yard scoring run that tied the score, 42-42, with 59 seconds to play.

The Chancellors appeared to stop Palisades (10-2) on fourth and one with 31 seconds left, but officials ruled that Ziegler’s forward progress was enough for the first down at the Dolphins’ 30-yard line.

On the next play, Koral connected with Charles Ealy for a 24-yard completion. On the winning touchdown two plays later, Ziegler caught Koral’s pass over the middle at the 20 and broke several tackles on his way to the end zone.

A pass interference penalty gave Chatsworth a first down at its 46 with no time remaining. Cassel’s desperation pass on the final play was intercepted in the end zone by Johnnie Macon.

Koral completed 22 of 29 passes for 424 yards and four touchdowns, giving him 53 touchdown passes this season.

Chatsworth recovered two fumbles deep in Palisades territory to set up second-quarter scores that pulled the Chancellors within 28-17. Cassel scored on a three-yard sneak and Tom Colley kicked a 22-yard field goal with 13 seconds left in the first half.

Cassel completed only three of 11 passes for 46 yards. Chatsworth was the defending champion, having won the City Division title last year.