Around the CAL/NEC 4: Week 8

A CORRECTION:
Before we get into this weekend's result, I have to make a correction to Sunday's Leftovers post. I stated that Saturday's loss to Hamilton-Wenham was the first regular season overtime game for the Pioneers since 1991.

However a loyal reader pointed out that I had obviously forgotten the 21-14 overtime loss to Manchester Essex in 2007.

Now I believe the reason I blocked that one out was because it was such a traumatic experience. Not that it had the same implications as this week's game, but the devastation was clearly just as brutal.

The 2007 squad was a team just trying to learn how to win. Lynnfield had come off of a winless 2004 and successive one win campaigns in 2005 and 2006. They opened the season with a tough 28-20 loss in 100 degree heat in Georgetown.

Game two was against the Hornets, who were coming off a Division 3A playoff appearance and were heavy favorites behind quarterback Pat Orlando. The Pioneers' Chris Grassi gave Lynnfield a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter when he hit Alex Mastrangelo with a four yard TD pass. They built that to 14-0 in the third when tri-captain Nick Tropeano blocked an Orlando punt and recovered it in the endzone.

The inspired Pioneer defense had held the dynamic Orlando to a pedestrian 3/9 for 36 yards to that point.   Lynnfield nursed that two touchdown lead until late in the fourth quarter. But with only 2:28 left in the game, the Pioneers were forced to punt into a howling wind at Newell Stadium in Gloucester from their own 34. The result was a two yard kick.

On the first play after the punt, Orlando threw a 36 yard TD pass to Sam Cohen to cut the lead to 14-7 with 2:19 to play. M/E forced another punt on a three and out and got the ball back at their own 34 with 1:42 to play in the game. It took them only five plays to eat up the 64 yards and Orlando hit Cohen again with a 32 yard TD pass to tie the game with 38 seconds left.

The Hornets had erased a 14-0 lead in 64 seconds.

The overtime was a foregone conclusion from that point. M/E scored to make it 21-14 (PAT's were allowed with those overtime rules.) The Pioneers fumbled after a completed pass on their first play of the OT and the Hornets recovered to nail down their improbable comeback overtime win.

And you wonder why I didn't want to remember that one?

Now on to this week's wrap up.

Things are starting to sort themselves out with only three weeks left in the season. First let's take a look at the standings.



Speaking of Manchester-Essex, they gave North Reading all they could handle in the battle of Hornets before falling 14-0. The big M/E line gave the NR wing some trouble, holding outstanding running back Carl Lipani to only one touchdown although he did pick up 179 yards on 33 carries. Lipani now has 15 TD's on the season and sits atop the Division 3A scoring race with 98 points. Joe Epps of Bourne is four points behind.

C. J. McCarthy gave NR a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a 10 yard run which was set up by his own 50 yard jaunt. Lipani punched it in from the one in the third quarter to make it 14-0.

M/E has struggled to score in their past three games, all losses, tallying only two touchdowns and 12 points. They will try to get back on the winning track when they host Ipswich this Friday night.

Meanwhile, North Reading heads up Route 128 to Hamilton to take on the Generals Saturday afternoon at 2:30 in a battle for first place in the CAL/NEC 4. Like Red Sox fans who were forced to root for the Yankees against the Rays in the dying days of the September Wild Card chase, Pioneer rooters must hope for a Hornet win against undefeated Hamilton-Wenham. A North Reading win would put the Hornets in first place at 3-0 but more importantly, would give the Generals a loss. Then at least the Pioneers would have a shot at throwing the title race into a tiebreaker situation if they could win their last three games including what could be a huge contest on Thanksgiving Day.

So Lynnfield fans should be wearing some green and gold under their Pioneer gear this Saturday.

Ipswich was finally rewarded for its hard work with a 26-6 win over Georgetown that wasn't quite as convincing as it looks.

For the second time this year, the Tigers started the game with a blitz, sack and fumble recovery for a touchdown when they did the trick against Royal quarterback Tyler Wade. Ipswich opened their loss to Newburyport the same way.

Georgetown answered back with a long drive but fumbled. They then recovered an Ipswich fumble and turned that into a score that made it 6-6 after one quarter. They had a chance to take the lead moving to the Ipswich 10 but couldn't get any further and turned it over on downs.

The Tigers answered with a 90 yard drive aided by two fake punts and scored to go up 12-6 at the half.

The Royals looked like they were going to tie the game on their first drive of the third quarter, moving all the way to the Ipswich 5 yard line. Again they stalled and turned it over on downs.

The Tigers put it away with a long drive to make it 20-6 in the third and sewed it up with another time consuming march that made it 26-6 in the fourth.

Ipswich goes for their second league win at M/E on Friday while the Royals prepare to host the Pioneers.

That's it for now. Check back Wednesday night for my next post on the Super Pioneers of 1986.