Image courtesy of Holy Cross Athletics By Mike Sidhly NEFJ Correspondent It’s rare for one matchup to symbolize a team’s season in its entirety, but that’s what Holy Cross faced on Saturday afternoon. With so much promise that was followed by a harsh reality check, and a late resurgence with a call to glory. This season has been anything but conventional for the Crusaders, who started the year 0-4 and……
UConn 46, James Madison 22 – Huskies move to within one win of a bowl bid
Image courtesy of UConn Athletics By Rob Gullo NEFJ Correspondent EAST HARTFORD — UConn quarterback Kaleib Osborne threw three touchdown passes and running back Cyncir Bowers scored three touchdowns as the Huskies’ football team earned its biggest win of the season defeating the James Madison Dukes 46-22. UConn improved to 5-5 with the win and will host Old Dominion next Saturday at 3:30 p.m. A win would make them bowl-eligible…
MIAA D3 Playoffs: (4) King Philip 31, (5) Melrose 21 – Warriors survive stiff test from Red Raiders
WRENTHAM – Early on in Friday night’s quarterfinal game, it looked like the No.4 seed King Philip might be primed for an upset at home against fifth-seeded Melrose Red Raiders in an MIAA D3 quarterfinal. But, thanks to a second-half surge, the Warriors prevailed with a 31-21 victory on Friday night, securing them a spot in the MIAA Division 3 semifinals. The win leaves King Philip as one of the…
Boston College Four Down Preview: BC Eagles (4-5) vs. No. 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8-1)
Image courtesy of ESPN Kickoff: Boston College is a 29.5-point underdog when they visit No. 5 Notre Dame for the latest installment of The Holy War on Saturday afternoon. The Eagles are currently 4-5, needing two wins in their final three games to guarantee a bowl bid. The Fighting Irish are coming off a win over No. 1 Miami last Saturday night in South Bend. 1st Down: With all of…
MIAA D5 Playoffs: (6) Norton 23, (3) Watertown 16 – Crazy finish sends Lancers to state semifinals
WATERTOWN – Next weekend when No. 6 Norton takes on No. 7 Foxborough in the MIAA Division 5 state semifinals with a spot in the Super Bowl on the line, no one will be talking about how they got there. But, it’s hard to deny the controversy that led to Norton pulling out a 23-16 win over third-seeded Watertown on Friday night, ultimately sending them to the next round. With…
MIAA D4 Playoffs: (5) Walpole 14, (4) Duxbury 13 – Timberwolves reach state semis on blocked PAT
By Colby Shannon NEFJ Correspondent DUXBURY — Duxbury spent much of its MIAA Division 4 quarterfinal matchup reeling, with just about everything going wrong until the fourth quarter. But with a minute to go, its offense found the life that the November chill sucked from them in the earlier stages of the game. That was thanks to Patrick Martin, who acrobatically reached for the pylon with the football in his…
Southington 38, Maloney 14, – Blue Knights outscore Spartans 21-0 in second half
Image courtesy of Denyel Alavarez By Rob Gullo NEFJ Correspondent MERIDEN — Down 14-7 to the Maloney Spartans midway through the second quarter, the Southington Blue Knights’ football team scored 31 unanswered points, including 10 in the last 4:31 of the second quarter to earn a big 38-14 road win Friday night. Running backs Ben Beaulieu and Nick Andrews scored the Blue Knights’ three touchdowns in the second half, outscoring…
Rhode Island D1 Playoffs: (2) La Salle 40, (3) North Kingstown 22 – Rams romp into state title game
By Charlie Adams NEFJ Correspondent PROVIDENCE – La Salle opened its season with a convincing win over North Kingstown on Sept. 4; the Rams repeated the result on Friday to punch their ticket to the state championship. After winning 34-7 in September, the No. 2 Rams’ offense one-upped themselves in a 40-22 victory over the No. 3 Skippers. “They got better, and hopefully we did too,” La Salle head coach…
MIAA D2 Playoffs: (3) Billerica 47, (6) Peabody 29 – Indians ride fast start into semifinals
By Michael Najarian NEFJ Correspondent BILLERICA — Just over eight minutes into the first quarter of an MIAA Division 2 quarterfinal, Billerica had already jumped ahead three scores, leading Peabody 19-0. According to head coach Shawn Theriault, that was exactly how they planned it. “We just jump teams,” said Theriault. “[It puts] a lot of pressure on them, it gives us a lot of momentum, and that’s how we’ve been…
MIAA D1 Playoffs: (1) St. John’s Prep 55, (9) Andover 26 – Prep rolls back into state semifinals
By Mike Sidhly NEFJ Correspondent DANVERS – St. John’s Prep head coach Brian St. Pierre wasn’t shy when describing his team’s offensive output against Andover on Friday night. “We could’ve scored whatever we wanted to score tonight,” St. Pierre said. “They were not going to stop us; they had no chance to stop us.” His words were proven true as SJP ran away, defeating Andover 55-26 in the MIAA Division…