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 Clinton Irish Blizzard: 21 - Charlestown Townies: 24 |
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Clinton Irish Blizzard vs |
21 |
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Charlestown Townies |
24 |
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Game Played 9/26/2009 2:00PM
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TOWNIES EDGE BLIZZ ON FINAL PLAY, EARN #1 SEED W/ 24-21 WIN
TOWNIES EDGE BLIZZ ON FINAL PLAY, EARN EFL #1 SEED WITH 24-21 VICTORY...
Saturday September 26, 2009 – 2pm Fuller Field, Clinton, MA
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Charlestown Townies 24 - CLINTON IRISH BLIZZARD 21
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Charlestown (8-1) 0 21 0 3 - 24
Clinton (8-2) 7 7 7 0 - 21
Clinton Scoring Summary:
1st: Gamble 4 yard TD run (Cairns kick)
2nd: Adams 10 yard TD pass from Riccio (Cairns kick)
3rd: Link 17 yard TD pass from Riccio (Cairns kick)
The top two teams in the Eastern Football League met to decide home field advantage and the number one seed in the upcoming EFL playoffs, and the game lived up to the hype as Charlestown booted a 40 yard field goal as time expired to edge Clinton in a thrilling 24-21 victory on Saturday afternoon in Clinton. Irish Blizzard quarterback John Riccio threw for 147 yards and two touchdowns and safety Derek Guimond recorded two interceptions in defeat. With the loss Clinton finishes the regular season at 8-2 and will now host an EFL Semifinal game as the number two seed on Saturday October 17th.
The Irish Blizzard began their second series on their own 4 yardline and marched 96 yards in 7 plays. Riccio connected with Jim Learned on a 20 yard pass and Dee Whitehead added a 47 yard run eventually brining Clinton deep into Townies territory. Ty Gamble raced in from 4 yards out and the Irish Blizzard led 7-0 in the first period. Charlestown answered right back on their next possession. Running back Neville Depass scored from 7 yards out, knotting the score at 7-7 in the second period.
Riccio caught fire on Clinton’s next series as he connected on consecutive passes to Ernie Adams, Lorin Reed, and Learned before scrambling for 13 yards, eventually setting up a 10 yard touchdown strike to Adams giving Clinton a 14-7 lead late in the 2nd quarter. At this point the Townies stunned Clinton with two Jon Jones touchdown passes in the final two minutes of the half. The first one came on a fourth down play with 1:16 left to even the score at 14-14. After a Blizzard fumble, Charlestown connected on a 50 yard desperation pass with :04 left in the half capping off a stunning 21 point 2nd quarter for the Townies.
Trailing 21-14, Clinton opened the half with a bang as Riccio hit Scott Allard on a 48 yard completion on the first play of the third quarter advancing the ball down to the Charlestown 16 yardline. After three plays netted -1 yards, Riccio found Rayshawn Link for a 17 yard touchdown pass on a key 4th and 11 play, tying the score at 21-21 early in the third quarter.
With the defenses settling in, the next seven series yielded zero points as both Charlestown and Clinton’s offenses failed to get much going. Derek Guimond notched his second interception of the game and a big Luis Rodriguez sack helped stop promising Townies’ second half drives. The Irish Blizzard took over with less than a minute left. A third down Riccio to Allard pass netted only 5 yards forcing Clinton to punt with :33 seconds left in regulation. With game looking like it was headed to overtime, a big punt return and a 25 yard scramble by Jones gave Charlestown a shot at a 40 yard field goal with :02 on the clock. Townies kicker Paul Ollivierra drilled the kick and split the uprights as time expired handing the Irish Blizzard a tough 24-21 loss.
The Clinton offense was led by Riccio who completed 8 passes for 147 yards and two scores against a stingy Townies defense. Allard, Learned, and Adams each caught two passes with Adams and Link recording touchdown catches. Jon Davies, Jay Berry, Nate Orcutt, Jeff Learned, and T.R. Staake did a solid job on the line as Blizzard backs rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. Whitehead led the way with 70 yards on the ground and Gamble added a touchdown run.
The Irish Blizzard defense played well against a potent Charlestown offense. The secondary was led by Guimond’s two interceptions. Safety Garreth Watts recorded five tackles and cornerbacks Chris Leblanc and Ronnie Guyton combined for 4 pass breakups. Inside Linebackers Alex Mitchell, Mike McGonagle, and Ross Eberhart were stout against the run. Outside Linebackers Dave Anderson, Brian Learned, and Dave Flaherty continued their solid play as the trio combined for 8 tackles. Up front, Luis Rodriguez, Shawn Phillips, Roger Blaikie, Brian Publicover, and Jamie Cairns anchored the defensive line. Rodriguez added a sack and Cairns netted two tackles for loss.
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