The 136th playing of the annual rivalry game between Middletown High School and Port Jervis High School will go down in the record books as one of the greatest comebacks in the history of the series and definitely as one of the most memorable. Down 33-14 with 5:12 left in the fourth quarter, the Middies from Middletown staged a historic come back in the annual “Battle of the Bell” and won 36-33. The comeback that ultimately won the game for the Middies, was dubbed by the local press as the “Middletown Miracle”, and was the culmination of an incredible rivalry week for these two schools in New York State and was unforgettable to the capacity crowd of 4,850.

MVP

Eamen Gillespie

Middletown

SCHOLAR ATHLETES

Justin Drew

Middletown

Eamen Gillespie

Port Jervis

HALL OF FAME

Earl Sheard

Middletown

Vincent Mortellaro

Port Jervis

GAME SUMMARY

Port Jervis and their quarterback option, running attack, and tough defense dominated nearly the entire game causing Middletown’s senior quarterback Brandon Nugent to throw three interceptions. But with 5 minutes to go Middletown scored when Nugent hit Isahiah Reyes with a 38 yard touchdown throw, converted a two point conversion, and recovered an on-side kick to trigger the historic comeback. Great American Rivalry Series Scholar Athlete and Game Most Valuable Player Eaman Gillespie ultimately caught the winning 56 yard halfback option pass from Ben Akoko with 32.5 seconds on the clock to seal the victory for the Middies.