The Longmeadow football team, shown during a prior game, were defeated by Nipmuc during Saturday's State D-V semifinals, 24-9. (LEON NGUYEN / MASSLIVE)
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11/17 - 5:00 PM Football Final Nipmuc 24 Longmeadow 9
WORCESTER -- After 39 minutes of action during Saturday's Division V state semifinal against Nipmuc, Luke Szyluk's 25-yard field goal cut Longmeadow's deficit to eight. On the next play, however, Nathaniel Gould recovered a Lancers' onside kick and brought it 55 yards for the score with 5:26 remaining in regulation.
In the end, the Warriors football team defeated Longmeadow by a final score of 24-9 at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and will face Southern Massachusetts champion Scituate inside the title game at Gillette Stadium with a time and date to be determined.
With the loss, the Lancers fell to 7-4 on the season.
“They (Nipmuc) made a huge play on the onside kick,” Longmeadow coach Nick St. George said after Saturday’s game. “It’s just, we practice and talk about that play all the time. However, ultimately, their kid stepped up and caught the ball -- that’s it.”
After an early three-and-out by Longmeadow to start the contest, Nipmuc took to the ground. Then, a trio of rushes by Preston Dougherty brought his team to the opposing 26. Four plays later, however, Richard Broni’s five-yard dash up the middle capped off an 18-play, 80-yard drive over nine minutes. Gould’s extra point gave the Warriors an early 7-0 advantage with 9:57 left in the half.
On the Lancers ensuing drive, Isaiah Dubois moved his team up five yards. Moments later, Maurice Powe was taken down by Matthews Richards attempting a sweep from the left for a loss of two -- forcing 4th-and-7.
A strong defensive effort from Longmeadow kept things close.
As the Warriors started their drive on the opposing 30, Joseph Schiloski and Broni moved them into the red zone. Two plays later, Tyler Case forced an errant pass by Judah Dishington. Now, with his team facing 3rd-and-9, Gould was brought in for a 20-yard field-goal attempt. Ultimately, the junior pushed his team's lead to 10.
Despite the deficit at halftime, St. George reminded his group to play to their strengths.
"Coach (St. George) asked us to start playing physical," Carlo Calabrese said. "They were taking us down throughout the first half, so he said to start making our blocks, and if we make that one stop on defense, we'll be OK."
The Lancers did just that, as back-to-back defensive standpoints by Will Crews and Calabrese produced the Warriors first punt of the evening during the third. On their ensuing series, however, Dubois' six-yard gain put his team on the 36. With Longmeadow now facing 3rd-and-10 from the opposing 36, Calabrese found a striding John Bouvier behind the secondary for a 64-yard touchdown reception -- making it a 10-6 contest with 5:48 left in the frame.
Calabrese was five-of-15 for 92 yards and a touchdown, while Dubois recorded eight rushes for 40 yards in a losing effort.
“It was huge because it got us on the scoreboard,” Calabrese said. “We were fired up from the play, but we just have to be better at executing our offense more proficiently.”
Ultimately, though, the lead was too much to overcome as Nipmuc countered with Broni’s five-yard rushing tally with 10:54 left in regulation to secure the victory.
Despite the defeat, the Lancers look to end their season on a positive note against cross-town rival East Longmeadow on Thanksgiving Day with a 10:00 a.m. scheduled start.
“It’s critical for us to secure that final win,” Calabrese said. “We just need to come back on Monday ready to work during practice so we can end the season strong.”
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