MANCHESTER - Saturday afternoon's matchup of Manchester Essex and Whittier-the top two teams in the Commonwealth Conference Large-was basically a de facto playoff game in November with the winner gaining control in the conference while the loser would have to hope for some help from other teams (a position you never want to be in) over the last two weeks of the regular season.
The Wildcats (9-0, 3-0) simply made more plays when it counted and had the look of a championship team as they held off a proud Hornets (7-2, 3-1) team 30-16 at Ed Field Field.
Whittier senior running back Nick Ferreira (20 carries, 181 yards, TD) and senior running back Donald Leighton (12 carries, 79 yards, 2 TD's) were the top performers in the game as Ferreira dominated the first half and Leighton made it happen in the second half.
"We wanted to control the clock," said Whittier head coach Kevin Bradley talking about the defensive strategy facing a Manchester Essex offense that came in averaging 33.3 points per game. "Everybody talks about our passing game but we can run the ball too. We wanted to keep the ball out of Carr's hands, he is a great scrambling quarterback and we were looking to keep him in the pocket."
For Hornets head coach Mike Athanas it was ironic that his much-maligned defense was actually the unit that played pretty well while their versatile offense struggled, only scoring one touchdown on its own since they had a kickoff return for a touchdown.
"We did some good things," said Athanas, "defensively we played a lot better than we have against a tough team. I think we just didn't execute well enough offensively. A couple dropped balls, a couple bad throws, a couple missed blocks. In games like this, mistakes like that cost you."
Last time we checked Las Vegas casinos don't set lines and prop bets for high school games but if they did, a 0-0 score after one quarter would have been the longest of long shots. Yet that's where the Hornets and Wildcats found themselves yesterday after the first 11 minutes.
However, the Hornets should have led since after punting following the game's first drive, Whittier muffed the punt and Manchester Essex senior cornerback Max Houle recovered the ball at the Wildcats 32-yard line. The Hornets could only manage one first down before a holding penalty and a fourth down stop by Whittier gave them the ball back.
Unfourtunately, that was a precursor of things to come as the Hornets were 0-for-3 on fourth down for the game.
Whittier moved the ball into Manchester Essex territory on the ensuing possession but senior linebacker Ben Kekeisen and the Hornets defense rose up with a big stop on fourth-and-5 from their own 37.
Manchester Essex's next posession also sputtered when it got into Whittier territory and they turned it over on downs once again.
Finally, Whittier's offense started clicking as they capped off a 13-play, 71-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run by senior running back Nate Allen. The 6-foot, 225-pound bruiser ran in the two-point conversion for a 8-0 Whittier lead with 2:19 left in the first half.
Bradley's defense pitched a shutout for three quarters and he credited their constant pressure for taking Manchester Essex junior quarterback Alex Carr (6 for 14, 78 yards, TD; 54 yards rushing) out of his comfort zone.
"We blitzed our speedy guys off the edge and it worked for the most part. Manchester Essex can run the ball too and I thought our defensive line did a great job and our linebackers cleaned up well."
The turning point of the game was on Manchester Essex's first drive of the second half when Kekeisen (54 total yards) fumbled in Whittier territory. The Hornets had smartly dug deep in the playbook one play earlier as Kekeisen found senior wide receiver Jake Brown for a 27-yard halfback option pass.
Whittier scored two plays later and from then on, the Hornets couldn't get any closer than 16 points.
"We moved the ball but that turnover changed the momentum," noted Athanas. "We got beat by a good football team, I give Whittier credit. They played well."
The Hornets wrap up their conference schedule with a game at Shawsheen on Saturday. Then they travel to rival Georgetown on Thanksgiving morning. Manchester Essex will need to win at Shawsheen then hope that Whittier gets upset by Greater Lowell Saturday and loses to Greater Lawrence on Thanksgiving since the Hornets have played one more conference game than the Wildcats.
"We still have a chance and we have to keep playing like that," explained Athanas. "We have to go to Shawsheen and win that game, that's what we need to do."
