Around the CAL Small: Week Nine

With only two league games left, things are starting to come into focus. Another team falls by the wayside and the big showdown in Hamilton between the Pioneers and Generals looms large.

But first, let's take a look at the updated standings.



Hamilton-Wenham took another step toward the title, kept their fate in their own hands and effectively knocked Amesbury out of the title chase with a dominating 20-6 win over the Indians in Landry Stadium last Friday.

I was at the game to see the Generals up close for the second time and it was a completely different team than the one that struggled to outlast Georgetown 12-10.

The Generals were able to move the ball at will and the disciplined Generals completely diffused the Indian wing T offense. Amesbury never got into H-W territory in the first half.

Despite their dominance, H-W could manage only a second quarter score, putting together a patented grind it out General drive of 10 plays in 94 yards eating up 4:31 minutes of clock. Quarterback Dylan Keith completed four passes on the drive and running back Elliot Burr was the workhorse on the ground and lugged it the final six for the score.

The Indians had a golden opportunity to even the score early in the third period. After a few misdirections and a double handoff, Indian speedster Stephon Deas found himself with the ball and nothing but open field in front of him. Indian fans were already mentally changing the scoreboard as Deas raced down the sideline. Shockingly, General sophomore Trevor Lyons rocketed on an angle and ran Deas down at the 17 preventing the TD.

It was a huge stop as the Indians could not punch it in and turned the ball over on downs.

"Here is a kid who all year long as a sophomore has made plays that go way beyond his years," General head coach Andrew Morency said of Lyons. "We talk about those special plays.Running a guy down, backside pursuit. He was able to do that. It saved us in a tough situation."

The Generals took over and marched the 83 yards on 12 plays with Keith prancing in from the three for the score to make it 14-0. The way the H-W defense was playing, it might as well have been 140-0.

On the Indians’ next possession Burr picked off a Tyler Lay pass at the Amesbury 30 and returned it for the score to make it 20-0.

The Indians scored in the fourth when Lay hit Nick Croce with a 34 yard TD pass, but H-W was never in danger in this one winning a lot easier than the 20-6 final score would indicate.

"Our defense really stood tough and we really fought hard," Morency told me. "They came through for us again today and I'm very thankful."

"This is great for us beating Amesbury," Morency summed up. "I have all the respect in the world for this program and Coach (Thom) Connors and beating a team like that is special and big for us.

The Indians will tune up for their big Thanksgiving Day game against Newburyport when they travel to North Reading this Friday.

In a game between two future contenders, North Reading picked up their first victory with a 14-7 comeback win at Georgetown.

The field was a quagmire making the going rough for both teams. The Royals struck first early in the second period when QB Tyler Wade hooked up with Derek Depasquale for a 70 yard touchdown pass.

The Royals attempted to build on the lead but a Wade field goal attempt failed early in the fourth quarter. Then the Hornets started buzzing.

Quarterback Nick Rosano (175 yards rushing, 68 yards passing) got NR on the board with an 80 yard run. The try for two failed but the Hornets were within one at 7-6.

With time running out, the Hornets mounted the game winning drive. They got to the Royal 10 on a 50 yard pass from Rosano to Eric Popp. Rosano swept in for the score. He then hit Carl Lipani for the two point conversion to nail down the win.

The Hornets will try to stretch their winning streak to two on Friday when they host Amesbury in their final game before the Thanksgiving rivalry game with the Pioneers.

Georgetown, meanwhile, will be carrying the hopes of Pioneer Nation when they travel to World War Memorial Stadium to take on Newburyport. A Royal upset, coupled with Lynnfield wins over H-W and North Reading would put the Pioneers back into the postseason.

Meanwhile, former Pioneer assistant coach Pat Sheehan must have broken several hundred mirrors this summer or perhaps he had a herd of black cats roaming his practice field in Byfield.

How else to explain the run of incredibly bad luck that has keep his team in every game but unfortunately out of the win column? The Vikings fell to 0-9 on the season with another  heartbreaking loss, this one to the Clippers in Newburyport last Friday.

The Vikes led 7-0 at half time but the  Clippers pulled to within one at 7-6 on a 65 yard run by Brett Fontaine on the opening drive of the second half.

Triton came roaring back driving to the Newburyport 20  yard line. On fourth and ten, quarterback Blaise Whitman found Caleb Hovey for the score. The two point conversion failed but the Vikings still let 13-6.

Clipper fullback Dean Cataldo (remember him) broke loose for a 61 yard gain deep into Triton territory then Tyler Martin ran it in from the four to make it 13-12.  The Vikings blocked the kick to preserve their slim lead.

After forcing a three and out,  the Clippers went to work marching 70 yards in 16 plays eating up almost nine minutes of clock. They stalled at the 15, but Jon Wright drilled one from 22 yards out to win the game for the Clippers.

Triton had two more possessions but both ended in interceptions.

The Clippers host Georgetown this Friday and are unlikely to take the young Royals for granted.

Meanwhile things don’t get any easier for Sheehan and his Vikings. Triton travels to Wilmington to face a Wildcat team still smarting froma 17-7  loss to North Andover that knocked them out of the title chase.

Postseason Puzzle

With the season down to the final two games, the postseason permutations have been simplified a bit. However, there is still a lot to be decided.

For this analysis, I will be assuming that the eventual champion will have only one league loss. Believe it or not there is another scenario, not entirely out of the realm of possibility considering the competitiveness of Ipswich, Amesbury and North Reading, where Lynnfield, Newburyport, Hamilton-Wenham and Amesbury could all finish with two losses. I won’t go into that one at this point however.

For now, let’s consider the likelier “one loss” possibilities.

Perhaps the simplest way to do this is to look at the three main contenders and outline the ways in which they could capture the title and go on to the post season. At this point, the Generals are the only team that controls their own fate. Everyone else needs help. However, depending on this weekend’s game, that could change.

Hamilton-Wenham

1)      Beat Lynnfield and they are in.

At 5-0 they would be a game ahead of Lynnfield and Newburyport and would own the tiebreaker against each. Game. Set. Match.

2)      Lose to Lynnfield (while allowing less than 14 points); Beat Ipswich; Newburyport beats Georgetown and Amesbury; Lynnfield beats North Reading

This would set up a three way tie with the Pioneers, Clippers and Generals and would fall to the “points allowed” tiebreaker. By allowing less than 14 points to Lynnfield, H-W would have allowed 20 points or less to Newburyport and Lynnfield. Newburyport has allowed 21 to H-W and Lynnfield thus giving the title to the Generals.

3)      Lose to Lynnfield; Beat Ipswich; Lynnfield loses to North Reading

Worst case this would result in a tie with Newburyport with one loss each and the Generals own the head to head tiebreaker.

Lynnfield

1)      Beat Hamilton-Wenham; Beat North Reading; Newburyport loses to Georgetown

2)      Beat Hamilton-Wenham; Beat North Reading; Newburyport loses to Amesbury

In either one of these scenarios, the worst that would result for the Pioneers is a tie with H-W with one loss each and they would own the head to head tiebreaker

Newburyport

1)      Beat Georgetown; Beat Amesbury; Hamilton-Wenham loses to Lynnfield (and allows more than 14 points), Lynnfield beats North Reading

This would set up a three way tie with Newburyport, H-W and Lynnfield. Newburyport would need the Pioneers to beat NR because their loss to H-W on opening day puts the Clippers on the wrong end of any head to head tiebreaker with the Generals. This scenario would go to the “points allowed” level and if Lynnfield scored more than 14 points against H-W, it would give the Generals more than the 21 points that the Clippers allowed to H-W and Lynnfield.

2)       Beat Georgetown; Beat Amesbury; Lynnfield beats H-W; Ipswich beats H-W.

Worst case, this would put the Clippers in a tie with Lynnfield with one loss each and they own the head to head tiebreaker by virtue of their 24-7 win over the Pioneers.

So whether or not the race continues hinges on the Pioneers beating Hamilton-Wenham on Saturday. If they don't, everyone is playing for pride and bragging rights on Thanksgiving Day.

That's it for now. Check back on Thursday for my preview of the Big Showdown.

Ipswich Leftovers

In my game preview post last Thursday, I called on some Pioneer alumni to help outline the best way to stop the tricky Delaware Wing T offense run by Ipswich. It was all great advice and as a companion piece for future reference, we can simply include the video of Saturday's stonewalling of the Tigers by the Pioneers.

You can read all the details in my Villager game story on Wednesday, but suffice to say, that was a big time performance in a crucial game.

I've been watching teams trying to defend that defense for over 30 years and I've never seen it done better than Lynnfield yesterday. There have been years when the Tigers were struggling and didn't have the personnel when the Pioneers have had success, but the result yesterday was not about the Tigers' talent.

Quarterback Brendan Gallagher, running backs Peter Moutevelis, Jake LeBlanc, Kenny Wing and receiver John Eldredge are good. They were just shut down by a superior defensive performance by the Pioneers.

"Ipswich does what they do well," said Pioneer head coach Neal Weidman after the game. "They have some very good players. They have a bunch of guys that can play but we wanted it today. Our players wanted it and that's why we had success."

Although the Pioneers came up huge in a game they had to have, this was a far from obvious outcome coming in. The Pioneer coaching staff (and a good number of the fanbase as well) was definitely apprehensive coming into this game. They were not sure what affect the brutal defeat in Newburyport would have on this team against Ipswich.

"I've been quite nervous all week," Weidman admitted. "They were workmanlike at practice is the best way to put it. There wasn't a lot of rah, rah stuff going on. I wasn't exactly sure how to take it. At the beginning of the week I thought they were a little somber, but by the end of the week, I realized that they were just serious."

The Pioneers had to play without co-captain Jeff Gannon for the second week in a row, forcing them to start a freshman, Kyle McGah along with sophomore Tyler Palumbo at linebacker. That is dangerous when you are trying to stop an intricate defense like the Wing T.

"Guys stepped up," Weidman said. "Last week was the first week with the adjustment (of not having Gannon) and we had another whole week to adjust to not having him which is helpful."

Gannon's availability for the big showdown with Hamilton Wenham this Saturday is still up in the air according to Weidman. "We're not sure yet. I'd love to have him back"

Turning Point
It may sound odd to talk about a turning point in a 41-0 blowout, but I think there clearly was one and it happened on the Pioneers' second series.

Leading 7-0, Lynnfield faced a second and nine from their own 34 yard line. They ran the option to the right side and co-captain Gino Cohee pitched to junior Mike Thomas. The pitch was a little high and not handled cleanly and the ball fell to the ground with Thomas in hot pursuit. For a moment it looked like the Ipswich defender was about to recover it but Thomas quickly snatched it back, covered it up and the Pioneers kept possession.

It went into the game chart as a four yard loss, but it could have been a huge momentum swing if the Tigers recovered at the Lynnfield 30 yard line with a short field and a chance to go in for the tying score.

Instead, on third and 13, Cohee faded back and drilled co-captain A. J. Roberto over the middle who reached up, bobbled it for a second, gathered it in and then motored away for a 70 yard TD reception. So instead of facing a potentioal 7-7 tie, the Pioneers led 14-0, a huge 14 point swing.

I'd call that a pretty big turning point.

Third Down Bingo
Part of the reason for the Pioneers early offensive barrage was their efficiency on third down in the first half. They were faced with third down six times and converted on five of them, two for touchdowns. Here is a rundown:

Third and 17 from their own 27. Result: Cohee 73 yard TD run.

Third and 13 from their own 30. Result: Cohee to Roberto 70 yard TD pass.

Third and 10 from their own 35. Result: Cohee to Roberto pass for nine yards. Punt.

Third and 7 from the 50. Result: Cohee 10 yard run for first down.

Third and 3 from the Ipswich 33. Result: Cohee four yard run for first down

Third and 7 from Ipswich 26. Result: Thomas 10 yard run for first down.

Those last three kept the Pioneers' third scoring drive alive and allowed them to go up 21-0.

"On the first two series especially we had more of a chance to see what they were doing against us defensively," Weidman explained. "Once we figured out what they were doing against us, we were able to figure out what we wanted to do on third down."

Making Their Points
Cohee notched two more touchdowns Saturday, increasing his career point total to 182. That moves him past Eric Hansen (1976-78) who has 180 into third place on the all time scoring list.

Meanwhile, Rick Berardino tallied twice more on long TD runs, lifting his point total for the year to 60, tops on the team. There is a real dogfight going on for the team scoring lead. Gannon is in second place with 56 points with co-captain Steve Ullian (49) and Cohee (48) lurking right behind. Roberto with 38 is still within striking distance as well.

As a team, the Pioneers now have an even 300 points, only the second team in school history to reach that mark. They are now second all time to the 1960 team which scored 410 points in nine games.

Saturday's game marked the fourth time this year the Pioneers have scored more than 40 points. The only other time that has happened was in 1960 when Lynnfield exceeded the 40 mark six times.

Pickpocket
In addition to leading the team in scoring, Berardino is also tops in interceptions. He picked off his fifth against Ipswich, which is the most in a single season since 1996 when Tony Reed snared six. That is the most since I've been keeping that particular stat which goes back to 1989. Dan Venoit and Matt Stanton each had four in 2000.

Passing Fancy
In the early going, the Pioneers looked like they really wanted to throw the ball, which once again was a function of reacting to what the defense was giving them. Eight of the first sixteen plays were pass plays.

"They were definitely bouncing around trying to make us guess what they were doing," Weidman said of the Tiger defense. "We are good when we run the ball well and when we make teams pay throwing the ball. If they don't let us run then we have to make them pay with the pass. It we don't make them pay then we don't have success."

Tiger Tales
This was the 42nd meeting between the Pioneers and the Tigers. That is more than any other Lynnfield opponent other than Masco who the Pioneers also faced 42 times and North Reading. The Hornets are the only team the Pioneers have played every year since the program started in 1958. This Thanksgiving will mark the 53rd meeting between the two rivals.

Lynnfield has a 16-26 record against Ipswich although the Pioneers have now won four in a row against them. The 41 points is the most Lynnfield has ever scored against the Tigers. Prior to last Saturday, the most points the Pioneers have scored against Ipswich was 28 which happened in 1980 and 1987. Overall the Tigers hold a 724-553 edge in scoring.

That's it for now. Check back on Tuesday when I'll take a look at this week's results around the CAL Small and update the playoff permutations.