RallyNorth.net

Sat, Sep 29, 2018 10:30 AM @ Whittier

Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Final
Shawsheen	0	6	8	6	20
Whittier	0	0	0	8	8

Shawsheen controls Whittier’s offensive attack

Saturday, September, 29 By Jeff Hamrick

HAVERHILL - Shawsheen didn't do anything that surprised Whittier. After all, defenses have been stacking the line of scrimmage against the Wildcats for years.

The Rams, however, just did it better than anyone else has this season.

Entering Saturday morning's game averaging 346 yards on the ground, Whittier was unable to muster half of that as Shawsheen took the Commonwealth Conference showdown 20-6.

"We see that all the time, so we expect that," Whittier coach Kevin Bradley said of the nine Ram defenders within four yards of scrimmage. "It's what we practice against. They had some good-sized guys. It just took us a time to get going. We came out in the second half and executed and made some plays."

Forcing three-and-outs on two of Whittier's four first-half possessions, the Rams controlled the early going, but managed only a 6-0 lead. A 32-yard pass from C.J. Zemetres to Conor Rich early in the second quarter provided the halftime edge.

Shawsheen (2-0 conference, 3-1 overall) upped the lead midway through the third when Zemetres found Josiah Martinez, who took a pass in the flats 72 yards for the score. Zemetres connected with Santino Garofalo for the two-point conversion.

The Rams had even offensive splits, passing the ball 19 times while rushing 18 times. But they did most of their damage through the air as Zemetres threw for 215 yards on nine completions.

"It's a part of our game that we're proud of and it really does help you out in a lot of situations," Shawsheen coach Albert Costabile said of the passing attack that had five plays go 23 yards or more.

Whittier (0-1, 2-2) battled back with an impressive drive that began after Shawsheen's second score. The Wildcats took over at the 32 and let AJ Espinal take command. The junior, who entered having gained 507 yards in three games, had 10 carries on the 18-play drive, including three third-down conversions and two more on fourth down.

Espinal ran for 13 yards on a fourth-and-7 from the 37 and added another 16 yarder on third-and-16 before finishing with 118 yards.

Quarterback Tyler Flodstrom sneaked in from the 2 to cap the drive that lasted 9:54, and Espinal added the conversion run.

"We play tough; running makes us tougher," Bradley said. "AJ and the other backs did a good job. We had some breakdowns, but that's going to happen when you play against a good team. But we still moved the ball."

Shawsheen, however, snapped Whittier's momentum with a game-clinching 63-yard drive that took less than three minutes on the ensuing possession that ended with a 25-yard Omar Eldaly run. That proved more than enough offense as the Rams held Whittier to 170 total yards - all of it on the ground.

"Defensively we did a great job controlling the line of scrimmage and not giving them avenues," Costabile said. "You can see on that scoring drive how good they are when they have good avenues to cut back. They're a potent rushing attack."

 

 

Shawsheen Valley 20, Whittier 8

Shawsheen Valley (3-1):     0 6 8 6 - 20

Whittier (2-2):     0 0 0 8 -  8

Second Quarter

S - Conor Rich 32 pass from C.J. Zemetres (kick failed), 10:36

Third Quarter

S - Josiah Martinez 72 pass from Zemetres (Santino Garofalo pass from Zemetres), 6:28

Fourth Quarter

W - Tyler Flodstrom 2 run (AJ Espinal run), 7:34

S - Omar Eldaly 25 run (kick failed), 4:40

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

RUSHING: SHAWSHEEN (18-70): Eldaly 4-38, Stephen Saint-Juste 5-17, Diondre Turner 4-8, Zemetres 5-7; WHITTIER (46-170): Espinal 22-118, Hector Gomez 9-28, Jonathan Caron 2-10, Flodstrom 8-8, Robby McGrail 5-6

PASSING: S - Zemetres 9-19-1, 215; W - Flodstrom 0-4-0, 0

RECEIVING: S - Rich 4-91, Martinez 2-71, Garofalo 2-47, Turner 1-6