A big day. The streak goes to 7-0. Lexington's first league title in many years. Second seed in MIAA division 1 North play-offs. A muddy celebration.
LEXINGTON WINS MIDDLESEX LIBERTY TITLE; AWARDED TWO SEED IN PLAY-OFFS
LEXINGTON, MA. October 27, 2016. If you arrived at Lexington’s Harold Crumb Field in last Saturday‘s rain just after the game ended, here’s what you would have seen.
There was a long line of Minuteman football players extending down the sideline. One by one they sprinted full tilt toward a dark brown pond, which their bench area had become, dove head first into the muck and skimmed on their bellies for about 20 yards while their teammates applauded joyously.
It was a fitting celebration of their muddy 41-27 victory over the Belmont Marauders that clinched their first Middlesex League Liberty title in 12 years, wrapped up an unblemished regular season at 7 – 0 and secured the 2nd seed in the MIAA Division 1 North playoffs.
Tomorrow night at 7 on this same field, the tension ratchets up, and the playoffs begin as the Minutemen face a visiting Andover High School team that will feature their own skilled quarterback in E.J. Perry IV running a high-powered offense. Bring your abacus….it should be fun.
Minuteman coach George Peterson is looking forward to the challenge. “We’re extremely excited to host a home playoff game against one of the best football programs in Massachusetts in Andover,” he said. “We’ve worked hard for 10 months to put ourselves in this position. We look forward to the opportunity.”
Lexington’s performance last Saturday against Belmont certainly helped their quest for a high play-off seed.
The Minutemen welcomed back their injured junior running back Ben Quint who had a storybook return scoring on a 65 yard run on the game’s first play from scrimmage for his first of no less than 4 touchdowns on the day.
“He’s the other half of our two headed monster,” said Peterson. “It was great to have him back.”
The monster went quickly to work on Lexington’s second possession. Starting on the Belmont 44, Quint went off tackle for 4 yards then handed things over to junior Quarterback Sal Frelick who had another great day with 198 yards rushing and one touchdown along with 3 touchdown throws. Frelick carried for 15 yards to the 25 and on the next play darted through the Marauder defense for what appeared to be a trademark lightening quick Minuteman score. But Lexington was caught holding on the play. No matter. Two plays later on 2nd and 20, Quint arrived in the Belmont end zone anyway after a 36-yard burst.
In typical fashion the Minutemen had jumped out to a 14-0 lead after just over 6 minutes of play, and it appeared that this one might be over early. But Belmont resorted to a unique trick play to get back into it quickly.
At the Lexington 31, Belmont senior quarterback Cal Christofori pitched to his senior running back Ben Jones, a beast all day, and it looked to all the world like a student body right sweep. The entire Lexington secondary, taking the bait, came up to meet the apparent run when Jones stopped suddenly, flipped it back to Christofori who threw 40 yards downfield to sophomore wide receiver Jared Edwards. Without a Minuteman in shouting distance, Edwards strolled in for the touchdown.
That play energized the visitors. They held Lexington to 4 plays, forced a punt and took over on their own 31. From there they launched a clock eating, 14 play 8 minute drive that ended with Jones bulling in from the 3. Jones carried on 10 of the 14 plays accounting for 51 of the 69 yards on the drive, and with 6:40 left in the half Belmont had climbed out of their hole to tie the score at 14.
But the Minutemen answered with 4 consecutive touchdowns in what might just have been their best stretch of the season, if not the most important.
Led by Frelick’s darting runs Lexington responded immediately moving from their own 37 to a first down at Belmont’s 14. After two incompletions and a procedure penalty the drive was in trouble. Facing 4th and 11 at the 19 Frelick, who seems at his most dangerous on 4th and long, arched a strike to senior wide out Spencer Kendall in Kendall country; the right corner of the end zone with 3:45 left in the half.
On the succeeding possession Belmont ran the clock down to just 34 seconds left in the half when they were forced to punt, and it seemed they could make it safely to the locker room down just one score. But Quint and Frelick had other ideas.
Quint fielded the punt at his own 23, reversed his field and bolted 34 yards all the way to the Belmont 43 before he was finally caught. Now with just 30 seconds left, Frelick carried for 18 yards to the 25. After a false start penalty, Frelick looked downfield freezing the Marauder secondary then tossed to a wide-open Quint out of the backfield on the right sideline where the junior running back took it from the 20 into the end zone untouched. What had been a tie only 6 minutes before became a two-possession Minuteman lead at half-time.
Belmont needed a strong opening drive in the second half, but the Minutemandefense forced a 3 and out. The offense took the field sensing the kill. On their second play Frelick went up the middle on a delay, broke into the Marauder secondary cut sharply left and sprinted up the sideline for a 75-yard touchdown that put the game away.
The Minutemen added a final score with 4 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Frelick hit Quint again, this time on a crossing pattern. Quint hauled it in at the Belmont 5 and finished off his day with a dive just inside the left pylon for Lexington’s 4th straight touchdown bringing the score to a comfortable 41-14.
Quint’s 4-touchdown return to action included 113 yards rushing and 4 receptions for 43 yards not to mention his critical punt return at the end of the first half.
The grind-it-out Belmont offense was led by workhorse running back Jones who scored two touchdowns, carried 27 times for 143 yards and caught 4 passes for another 76 yards.
So tomorrow night’s challenge awaits. With two strong offenses and a match-up of two skilled quarterbacks, it will be “must see” high school football.
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