Goal-line stand in final seconds seals victory
Published March 24, 2021
By JAMES CRANNEY
LYNNFIELD – If you were to ask the casual football fan what he or she wants to see in a game, they would probably respond with touchdowns. A seasoned fan may respond differently preferring either a defensive chess match or battle for field position. If you find yourself identifying with the latter, this game was for you.
Last Saturday afternoon, the 1-0 Lynnfield Pioneers welcomed 1-0 Newburyport for the second game of the Fall 2 season. During the previous season, these teams played each other twice with Lynnfield outscoring their opponent by 60 points. In what would be the 50th meeting between both schools, the offense would not be the story.
The Pioneers received the opening kickoff and began from their own 33 yard line. After breaking the single game school record for touchdown passes and individual points the week prior, senior quarterback Austin Sutera (13-25, 244 yards, 2 touchdowns) would have much less time to find his groove.
Newburyport’s defensive strategy going into the game was fairly straightforward: blitz and then blitz some more.
As fast as they took the field, the Pioneers were quickly leaving it following a 3rd down sack from Newburyport linebacker Nicolas Colella.
Newburyport’s first possession on offense would have a bit more rhythm. The Clippers gashed their way into the Lynnfield red zone following seven straight run plays. Despite capturing the early momentum, an errant handoff lead to sophomore defensive lineman Sam Gazit pouncing on the loose ball.
Another Pioneers three-and-out would give possession back to Newburyport and this time the Clippers would not falter. With 2:30 left in the first quarter, junior running back Jacob Buontempo punched it in from 3 yards out to give Newburyport a 7-0 lead.
For the remainder of the first half, Lynnfield’s offense would momentarily move the ball, but the Clippers defense always seemed to come up with a timely 3rd down sack. Despite the offensive troubles, the Pioneer defense would not budge either. After Newburyport’s touchdown drive, Lynnfield’s defense forced four consecutive three-and-outs.
With just over a minute left in the 2nd quarter, a Pioneer turnover gave Newburyport the ball in plus territory. The Lynnfield defense would once again have to make a stand. With 13 seconds left in the half and no timeouts remaining, Newburyport had the ball at the Lynnfield 7 yard line.
On 2nd and goal, pressure upfront forced Sullivan to try and scramble for the end zone. At first glance, it looked like he would cross the plane with ease. That was until Jack Ford, Nicolas Marcinowski, and DJ Capachietti were there to stuff the quarterback at the 1. Out of timeouts, Newburyport did not have enough time to spike the ball and the clock would expire. The game would stay 7-0 following the goal line stand, but was far from being the Pioneers’ biggest play on defense.
Similar to the first half, the Clippers opened the second half with a long offensive drive. Nine plays in, Newburyport faced a 4th-and-5 on the cusp of Lynnfield’s red zone. Sullivan called his own number on 4th down only to be met by a swarm of navy blue jerseys. Before the Newburyport quarterback was officially downed, he coughed the ball up where junior defensive lineman Mekhi Peters was there to secure it. Once again, the Pioneers would force a turnover after a long Newburyport opening drive.
The remainder of the 3rd quarter would be a battle for field position as both defenses refused to give an inch. Although, after giving up four first half sacks, Lynnfield’s offensive line was finally able to slow down the onslaught of blitzers.
“We had some halftime adjustments on pass protection we were trying to work out,” said Pioneers head coach Pat Lamusta. “Sam Gazit, a sophomore, stepped in to play tackle for us…he’s typically a tight end, but he was able to jump in and give us some reinforcement for Austin.”
Late in the 3rd quarter, the reinforcements finally began to pay off. Lynnfield began mixing in quick throws and screen passes to mitigate Newburyport’s aggressive pass rush. Similar to a boxer, the Pioneers threw continuous body shots and patiently waited to deliver the overhand. On 3rd and 12 with 11 seconds left in the 3rd quarter, Lynnfield took their shot.
With the Clippers defense expecting a quick pass, senior captain receiver Jack Ford (6 catches, 150 yards, 2 touchdowns) ran about five yards and turned his body back. The Newburyport corner took the bait and could only watch as Ford blew by before hauling in a 52-yard touchdown pass from Sutera. Sophomore kicker Kevin Connolly delivered the extra point and made it a 7-7 game going into the 4th quarter.
With 7:30 remaining in the final quarter and the momentum on their side, the Pioneer offense took the field in hopes of breaking the tie. The pass protection adjustments continued to slow down Newburyport’s pressure and gave Sutera the time needed to march the troops down field.
At the Clipper 39 yard line, the Pioneers faced another 3rd down and once again looked to Ford. Sutera hit the senior captain with a pass at the 20 yard line. Despite having enough to move the chains, number 85 was far from finished. Ford was able to spin out of one tackle then outrun two Newburyport defenders for a 39 yard touchdown.
“I don’t know what happened,” commented Jack Ford on his second touchdown. “I thought they were going to tackle me and they came in with their shoulder and bumped me, and I bounced right off.”
Coach Lamusta was also impressed with the receiver’s performance stating, “Jack Ford just shows our team and our players what is possible. He’s a captain and leads by example, even in the classroom. He has a 3.6 GPA.”
Ripping the ball out of the receiver’s hands, Lynnfield senior captain Bakari Mitchell made an astounding interception with 4:29 left in the game. Leading 13-7, the Pioneer offense could not close it out and needed just one more stop on defense.
In the closing minutes, Sullivan was able to move the Clippers into scoring position. With 1:17 remaining, Newburyport was only one yard away from a potential game-winning touchdown. If Lynnfield wanted to hold on for their second win, the defense would once again need to answer the bell on the goal line.
For three straight plays, the Pioneer defense held their ground. On the all-important 4th and goal play with 35 seconds left in regulation, Newburyport would try and win it on the ground. Sullivan handed it off to Buontempo but was immediately brought down by Spencer Riley, Marcinowski and Steven Dreher to secure the Lynnfield victory.
Following a shootout victory the week prior, the Pioneers showed they can win in more than one way. With five games still to play in the Fall 2 season, coach Lamusta knows his team still has their work cut out for them. Especially since there will be a rematch with this Newburyport team in only three weeks.
“We’re going to see them again,” claimed coach Lamusta. “We have a lot to fix before then and we have a lot to fix before Pentucket (Friday, 5:30 p.m. at Pioneer Stadium), but I am happy and going to try my best to enjoy it.”
