Picarelli’s Three Touchdown Catches Lead South Lakes To Victory Over Chantilly

By BRIAN McNICOLL

Nick Picarelli owns the Chantilly Chargers. Always has.

“I don’t get it. I don’t understand why they don’t adjust,” he said after racking up 197 yards receiving and three touchdowns to lead the South Lakes High Seahawks to a 33-28 victory over Chantilly Friday night at South Lakes. ”All the way back to when I was a kid … they’ve never been able to cover me.”

They certainly didn’t cover him well Friday night. Picarelli caught a 72-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter, a 29-yard scoring pass in the second quarter and a 30-yard TD pass when the Seahawks needed it most in the fourth quarter as South Lakes raced to a big and hung to improve to 5-2 overall, 2-0 in the Concorde District. Chantilly, which overcame Picarelli’s heroics last year -- a school-record 98-yard touchdown pass reception -- to win on the last play of the game, lost its fourth straight to fall to 3-4 overall, 0-2 in the league.

“Deep balls were open all night,” said South Lakes Coach Jason Hescock. “Picarelli had the advantage the entire game.”

South Lakes had scored just three points all year in the first quarter before Friday night, but the Seahawks came out hitting on all cylinders. South Lakes rolled 75 yards on its first possession, mostly behind the legs of Dalton Blakeney, who returned to the 100-yard column for the first time since Week 2 against Robinson with 109 yards on 22 carries but was held without a touchdown for the first time this season.

But on a key third down at the Chantilly 20, it was junior quarterback Christian Wyatt who scrambled eight yards for a first down. On the next play, Wyatt zigged to the left then came back to the right and scampered into the end zone for a 7-0 South Lakes lead.

“I think it was a pass play originally,” Wyatt said. “I really can’t remember,” said Hescock after the game.

Two possessions later, Picarelli had the first of his three TD catches – the 72-yarder on a post down the middle to make it 14-0 with 24 seconds left in the first quarter.

But the Chargers used a hard-nose, between-the-tackles approach to move the ball effectively all night, and they employed it to get back in the game on the following drive. Chantilly moved 60 yards to score after an out-of-bounds kickoff. But they used 13 plays, 12 of them runs, and consumed more than half the second quarter before senior running back James Marion banged over for a touchdown on a 1-yard run on fourth down to make it 14-7.

But the Seahawks had much more to say offensively. They responded with a 78-yard march in which sophomore wide receiver Josh Dagby was the focus. Dagby caught two balls over the middle to convert third downs and then took in a 22-yard pass over the middle for the touchdown to put South Lakes up 21-7,

It went 27-7 early in the third quarter on the second of Picarelli’s three scores, this one a 29-yard pass up the right sideline when he beat a one-on-one defender easily for the score.

And that’s where the trouble began.

Chantilly put together another lengthy drive, this one 67 yards in a laborious 18 plays. It included three crucial third-down conversions and a South Lakes penalty and culminated with a three-yard touchdown run by Manion to make it 27-14.

South Lakes then failed to move on its next possession and a fake punt was not successful, giving Chantilly the ball at midfield. The defense held that time, but after South Lakes’ next possession, the Chargers struck quickly with a 32-yard connection from Sahir Mantri to Ryan Vail to midfield, then, with no huddle, a 50-yard strike for a touchdown to Aiden Scire.

Suddenly it was a one-score game with 4:41 left on the clock.

But that’s when Picarelli finished them off. On a third-and-14 at the South Lakes 26, he went across the middle for a deep catch for 51 yards to the Chantilly 23. Three plays and a South Lakes penalty later, he went up the left side and beat the coverage again for a 30-yard touchdown that made it 33-21 South Lakes with 1:53 to go.

Chantilly did what it had to do, driving 56 yards after a good return to a 2-yard scoring run by Manion to make it 33-28. But the tragedy of 2024 was avoided when South Lakes senior defensive back Labeed Zaib fell on the onside kick to secure the victory.

“Nick is a speed demon,” said Wyatt, who doubled his TD pass totals with Friday’s output. “Not only that, he knows how to get open and he makes the catch.”

Hescock said he liked the way his team came through in the clutch, but he wishes it wouldn’t have come to that. “We’re the cardiac kids every week … no doubt about it,” he said. “But we find a way in these situations, and that’s what counts. Big night for our offensive line. Big night for Nick obviously. Big night for the Seahawks.”

Chantilly 0 7 7 14 – 28
South Lakes 14 13 0 6 – 33
SL-Christian Wyatt, 12 run (Nicholas Bertoni kick)
SL-Nick Picarelli, 72 pass from Wyatt (Bertoni kick)
C-Sahir Matri, 1 run (Ryan McDonald kick)
SL-Josh Dagby, 22 pass from Wyatt (Bertoni kick)
SL-Picarelli, 29 pass from Wyatt (kick failed)
C-James Marion, 3 run (McDonald kick)
C-Aiden Scire, 50 pass from Mantri (McDonald kick)
SL-Picarelli, 30 pass from Wyatt (pass failed)
C-Mantri, 2 run (McDonald kick)

C SL
First Downs 17 14
Rushes-Yards 30-106 33-163
Passing Yards 216 291
Attempts-Completes-Int 28-16-0 19-11-0
Punts-Avg 3-30 1-31
Fum-Loss 1-0 1-0
Penalties-Yards 3-15 11-100

RUSHING – Chantilly: Marion 21-88, Mantri 4-6, Jahrod King 6-12. South Lakes: Dalton Blakeney 22-109, Wyatt 8-45, Picarelli 2-5, Alex Lennon 1-4.
PASSING – Chantilly: Mantri 28-16-0, 216 yards, 1 TD. South Lakes: Wyatt 19-11-0, 291 yards, 4 TDs.
RECEIVING – Chantilly: King 3-15, Marion 2-14, Ryan Veil 5-37, Quamae Rogers 1-14, Jake Sikra 2-21, Jayden Windham 2-25, Saire 1-50, TD. South Lakes: Picarelli 6-197, 3 TDs; Dagby 3-46, TD; Blakeney 1-22, Strickland 1-22.