It was a cold night, low 30’s at Essex High School Stadium on Friday as two top athletic programs in the state of Vermont joined the field to continue a football rivalry that dates back to 1981.

MVP

Troy Davine

Rutland

SCHOLAR ATHLETES

Taylor Amato

Essex Junction

The scholarship recipient from Essex is Taylor Amato, son of Richard Amato and Ruth Pottinger-Amato. Taylor is a three-year letterman in football and lacrosse. He is a member of the National Honor Society and volunteers as a tutor to other students. He is also treasurer of the student government and active in the Athletic Leadership Council. Taylor plans to attends LSU and major in engineering.

Andrew Borkowski

Rutland

Rutland’s scholarship winner is Andrew Borkowski, son of Mark and Kathy Borkowski. Andrew is a three-year letterman in football and basketball and was selected first team All-State in football as offensive lineman last year. He has taken a rigorous academic schedule and will begin pursuing a degree in engineering next fall.

HALL OF FAME

Max Librizzi

Essex Junction

Max played in the Rutland-Essex rivalry for three years. Last year, as a senior, Max led Essex to a 35-13 regular season win, with 338 yards passing and three touchdowns. In the championship game he was even better, rushing for the first touchdown and completing 23 of 30 passes for 404 yards and three touchdowns. He is now playing quarterback at Holy Cross.

Jake Eaton

Rutland

Jake played in the Rutland-Essex rivalry his sophomore, junior, and senior years. As one of the captains of the 1998 team, Jake led his team to a 26-21 victory over Essex and a state runner-up title. In the Essex game, Jake injured his hand badly and missed almost the entire first half. After getting medical clearance, he returned in the second half and threw three touchdowns including the winning touchdown with no time remaining on the clock. Jake was named the Gatorade Player of the Year twice and went on to be the star quarterback at University of Maine before playing professionally.

GAME SUMMARY

The game started off with a slow pace and by halftime, the Rutland Raiders took at 13-0 lead. Going into the 3rd, Essex hit the field hard and took a 14-13 lead on two touchdown passes. In an effort to add another gain on the Essex vs. Rutland rivalry, Rutland exploded for 22 points in the fourth quarter to overcome Essex's 14-13 lead and took a 35-14 victory.