Holy Cross of Waterbury trailed at halftime last Friday, so coach Mike Giampetruzzi told his stunned team that good teams start the second half by scoring, followed by a defensive stop.

“We scored,” Giampetruzzi said with a laugh. “And then we gave up another score.”

Regardless, Holy Cross continued to be a good team. It rallied with less than four minutes remaining to beat city-rival Sacred Heart of Waterbury, 21-20.

“We found a way,” Giampetruzzi said. “We stress that all the time. One play at a time. Bad things are going to happen, and you have to be able to overcome that.

“It all worked out.”

The Crusaders are ranked ninth in The Day’s Top 10 state coaches poll. More importantly, Holy Cross (7-0) leads the CIAC Class SS rankings and is the division’s only unbeaten team.

“We didn’t expect our record to be this good,” Giampetruzzi said. “We expected to be in the top tier of our league. We were hoping to win four out of our first five and be 4-1. We played Ansonia in Week 3 and then Woodland and Torrington, so we were hoping to be in that (4-1) range after five games.”

Holy Cross put the state on notice with its 21-13 victory over Ansonia on Oct. 2. The Crusaders trailed after three quarters, 13-6, before coming back.

The Crusaders’ ascenion can be traced to the end of last season, though. They were 2-6 when they won their final three games, including a 14-8 upset of Wolcott on Thanksgiving that kept the latter out of the SS playoffs and allowed Montville to qualify instead.

“We had seven juniors last year play offense and defense,” Giampetruzzi said, “so we had a chance to be pretty good (this year). … (Winning those final three games) just got us going into the offseason.”

Holy Cross isn’t spectacular on offense, but is workmanlike and efficient. Junior Brendon DiClementi (5-foot-5, 148 pounds) has rushed for a team-high 777 yards and eight touchdowns while fellow junior Pat Cronin (5-9, 158) has run for 331 yards and five touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Ryan Plourde has rushed for 408 yards and three touchdowns and completed 27 of 60 passes for 591 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions.

“We use ball control and don’t turn it over much,” Giampetruzzi said. “We just hang on to the ball and go on long drives.”

Defense has been the Crusaders’ strength. They’ve allowed 8.7 points a game and are led by their defensive line — ends Ryan Kalnins (6-1, 180) and Tanner Young (6-1, 203), and tackles Dan Huggins-Penn (6-0, 269) and Lucas Rodriguez (6-0, 269).

“We have three seniors up front (Huggins-Penn, Kalnins and Young) who have been playing since they were sophomores,” Giampetruzzi said.

“We can play a four man front or we can play a three man front, and we don’t have to change personnel to do that. We can play multiple fronts with those kids and they’re able to go along with what we’re doing. Ryan Kalnins drops back to linebacker (in a three-man front) and we take Lucas Rodriguez and have him play at defensive end.”

The Crusaders senior linebacking corps of Brandon Monti ( 5-9, 203), Tom Lacaria (5-10, 191) and Chris D’Esposito (5-11, 212) has also been quite good.

Finally, New Canaan vs. Greenwich

The game may have lost some luster after Greenwich lost in Week 6, but its game this Friday against New Canaan is still one of the season’s most highly-anticipated contests. The game is at Greenwich at 7 p.m.

The two Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference powers haven’t played since the 2006 conference final, which Greenwich won, 28-0.

The Cardinals have gotten the better of New Canaan this decade, winning four of six meetings. The Rams beat Greenwich in the 2000 league final, 21-20, and the teams played to a scoreless tie in the 2002 regular season.

Top-ranked New Canaan (7-0) will be favored in this game as its won 23 straight and is the defending conference champion. It reloaded after heavy graduation losses, just like it did last year, and continues to be one of the state’s finest purveyors of the wide-open passing game. Three Rams’ quarterbacks have combined to average 332 passing yards a game, but Turner Baty took over as the starter three games ago.

Baty, a Division I prospect who played in California last season, has thrown for 1,464 yards with 16 touchdowns and three interceptions.

Receiver Cody Newton has 41 catches for 817 yards and two touchdowns while Kevin Macari has added 25 catches for 520 yards and seven touchdowns.

The Cardinals (6-1) lost to Bridgeport Central on Oct. 23, 14-13, but are still considered a top Class LL contender. They’re throwing much more this season as Michael Lefflbine has completed 67 percent of his passes for 1,127 yards and 12 touchdowns and run for a team-best 257 yards and eight touchdowns.

Greenwich has been exceptionally good on defense — it’s allowed just 55 points.

Other games of note: Ridgefield (6-1) at Trumbull (6-1), Friday, 6 p.m.; Bacon Academy (4-2) at East Lyme (6-1), Friday, 6:30 p.m.; Montville (6-1) at Ledyard (4-2), Friday, 6:30 p.m.; Cheshire (6-1) at West Haven (4-3), Friday, 7 p.m.; No. 3 Glastonbury (7-0) at New Britain (4-3), Friday, 7 p.m.; No. 4 Masuk-Monroe (7-0) at Bethel (6-1), Friday, 7 p.m.; St. Paul/Goodwin Tech (6-1) at Ansonia (5-2), Friday, 7 p.m.; Wethersfield (4-3) at Northwest Catholic of West Hartford (6-1), Saturday, 2 p.m.; Coventry/Windham Tech (6-1) at Gilbert/Northwestern Regional (4-2), Saturday, 2:30 p.m.

News and notes

■ Old Naugatuck Valley foes Ansonia and Derby/O’Brien Tech, who have one of the state’s oldest rivalries, renewed acquaintances Friday after a six-year break in the series.

The team first played in 1902, but the series was discontinued after 2003 because  Woodland of Beacon Falls joined the NVL, meaning that Ansonia no longer had room on its schedule to play any non-conference games.

Derby left the Southern Connecticut Conference for the Naugatuck Valley League over the offseason, meaning that it could play Ansonia again.

It may have been six years between games, but some things never change — Ansonia won. Montrell Dobbs ran 32 times for 193 yards and four touchdowns in a 44-14 victory. The Chargers lead the series, 49-28-6, including two victories over the Red Raiders in the state finals.

■ The CIAC’s score management rule caused a few headaches last weekend.

Trinity Catholic of Stamford coach Peter Stokes was irate after his team beat East Haven last Saturday, 43-7, because he had to begin taking precautions in the third quarter.

“The 50-point rule is ridiculous,” Stokes told the Stamford Advocate. “It was put in because of Jack Cochran, and he’s not coaching now so the rule should be eliminated. Coaches aren’t focusing on the game but on the rule. No coach I know wants to embarrass another coach.”

Greenwich led Westhill of Stamford late in the third quarter Friday, 45-0, and had the ball deep in Vikings territory when it took three straight knees. The Cardinals won, 45-7.

■  Turner Baty was 21 of 33 for 383 yards and six touchdowns as New Canaan blitzed Wilton Friday, 42-7. ... Frank Guardi fielded a squib kickoff and returned it 65 yards for the game-winning touchdown with 20 seconds left to give New Fairfield its 26-22 win over Bunnell of Stratford Friday. ... Joe DellaVecchia threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns and scored on two touchdown runs as St. Joseph of Tumbull won Friday, 49-18, over Fairfield Warde.

■ The Staples of Westport defense forced four turnovers and allowed just 148 yards in Friday’s 38-0 win over Wilton. Keith Gelman made his first start at quarterback for Staples as Brandon Pacilio had broke his ankle the previous week against Harding of Bridgeport and is out of the season. Gelman was 6 of 14 for 80 yards.

■ Foran of Milford’s Tucker Schumitz ran 16 times for 274 yards and three touchdowns in Friday’s 28-7 win over Sheehan of Wallingford. ... Sean Goldrich was 12 of 15 for 195 yards and three touchdowns as No. 10 Notre Dame of West Haven beat Hand of Madison Friday, 28-14. ND trailed at halftime, 14-0. ... Ben Crick had 17 carries for 162 yards and two touchdowns, a 17-yard touchdown catch and scored on a 70-yard kickoff return as No. 7 Pomperaug of Southbury beat New Milford Friday, 49-28.  John Krafick was 15 of 33 for 326 yards with four touchdowns for New Milford.

■ Conley Cummings ran for 127 yards with three touchdowns and Kyle Decker added 137 rushing yards and a touchdown as Simsbury beat Southington Friday, 29-26. ... Milton Jackson’s 22-yard field goal with three seconds left gave South Windsor its 17-14 win Friday over East Hartford. ... Jack Hayes scored on a 2-yard run with one minute, 4 seconds left in the game to give Northwest Catholic of West Hartford its 20-14 win over Rocky Hill Friday.

■ Mitch Thornton ran 19 times for 209 yards and three touchdowns and Luke Halgren added 17 carries for 160 yards and a touchdown as Tolland beat Platt of Meriden Friday, 43-28. ... Cory Gardner completed 19 of 25 passes for 395 yards and five touchdowns Friday as Maloney of Meriden beat E.O. Smith of Storrs, 41-6.

■ Jalen Hill had 102 yards receiving and four touchdowns for Bloomfield in Friday’s 50-6 rout over Rockville of Vernon. ... New Britain racked up 541 yards of offense in Friday’s 38-0 win over Middletown. The Hurricanes’ Kaiuway Boima ran 22 times for 209 yards and touchdown. ... Kennedy of Waterbury beat Naugatuck for the first time in school history Friday, 24-12.

■ Sacred Heart quarterback Rohan Ifill was 16 of 26 for 341 yards and two touchdowns and scored on a 1-yard run in a losing cause against Holy Cross. Dave Coggins added 12 catches for 212 yards and a touchdown. ... Ethan Buster scored on a 2-yard run in the second overtime to give Stratford its 41-38 win over Barlow of Redding Saturday. ... Conard of West Hartford beat Bristol Central 35-0 Saturday, its fifth shutout of the season. The Chieftains have allowed a state-low 13 points.

■ Pierre Narcisse threw four touchdowns and ran for another as Windsor beat Hall of West Hartford Saturday, 43-33. ... Calvin Winstead scored on a 4-yard catch, a 75-yard punt return and a 12-yard run as Cromwell beat Morgan of Clinton Saturday, 48-12. ... Ross McDonald ran for 100 yards and four touchdowns — on eight carries — in Avon’s 47-6 rout of the Windsor Locks/Suffield co-op Saturday.