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Pinkerton drops heartbreaker to Brockton

Saturday, October, 17 By David Willis
Staff writer

DERRY — For the better part of three quarters, the upset seemed to be in reach.

Pinkerton had Brockton, the No. 2-ranked team in Eastern Mass., on the ropes, dominating the Boxers in the first half and leading by a touchdown late in the third quarter.

“We controlled the line of scrimmage,” said Astros coach Brian O’Reilly. “We didn’t get pushed around, and they couldn’t stop our running game in the first half.”

But as potent as the Pinkerton offense was through 22 minutes, it struggled after the break and Brockton scored twice in the final 1:27 of the game to beat the Astros 28-14 yesterday afternoon.

It was the second straight tough loss for Pinkerton to the Boxers, falling 28-27 a year ago.

“They always get us in the close games,” said O’Reilly. “But if we played them again, it would come right down to the line again. It was a very even game.

“But there are no moral victories here. We aren’t happy about it because the game was close. At Pinkerton, we expect to win.”

Pinkerton started off hot out of the gates. After stopping Brockton’s first possession, the Astros went on a nine-play drive that quarterback Ryan Simpson capped off with a 4-yard QB sneak for a score.

Brockton responded, but Pinkerton followed with a 10-play drive that ended with a Mike Mazzola 9-yard touchdown run.

The 14-7 halftime lead was accomplished with Simpson throwing just a single pass — a spike to stop the clock — because the running game was rolling. In the first half alone, star back Eric Guinto tallied 77 yards (14 rushes), Mazzola had 56 yards on eight carries and Luke Somers had 18 big yards on three carries.

But that success could not be found after the half. In the final two quarters, Pinkerton managed just 75 yards of total offense as a team and just three first downs. The Astros passing game was neutralized by the Brockton pass rush, as Simpson (1 for 4, 7 yards) was sacked five times on just nine dropbacks.

“They run the ball so well,” said Brockton coach Peter Colombo. “Their misdirection is very tough to simulate and we had a lot of trouble adjusting. But we were able to do it in the end, and add the two scores.”

Brockton tied the game with 3:19 remaining in the third quarter. But for a while it seemed like Pinkerton’s defense would make up for the offensive struggles.

The Boxers drove to the Astros’ 40-yard line early in the fourth, but Pinkerton’s Ben Proulx (team-high nine tackles) ended the drive with a sack on fourth down.

But after an Astors three-and-out, Brockton took the lead for good as they finished a 10-play drive with a touchdown with 1:27 left in the game. The Boxers then recovered a fumble on the following kickoff and punched it in for an insurance score at 0:45.

“Luke Somers has become a key part of our team and Mazzola ran the ball very well,” said O’Reilly. “They are both excellent compliments to Guinto. But a loss is a loss, and we are not pleased or happy.”