SOUTH HAMILTON — It was an impressive display of power football … and unfortunately for Pingree, they were powerless to stop it.
Visiting Dexter Southfield took to the ground and pounded the Highlanders in a 41-13 victory on a chilly Saturday night under the lights on Pingree’s turf field. It was Pingree’s first loss on ‘The Farm’ at home since October 8, 2016, snapping a 27-game home winning streak.
Fullback Quinn Carver did the bulk of the damage for Dexter Southfield (7-1), rumbling for 259 yards and the game’s last four touchdowns on 24 carries. In totality, Dexter racked up over 400 yards of offense with 341 yards rushing, never punted and scored on each of its last five possessions.
Having a Penn State committed lineman in Liam Andrews (who played his freshman season at Bishop Fenwick) helped Dexter set the tone physically, but the visitors were big, powerful and fundamentally sound across the entire line.
“We’re not a big power team. Dexter was the first team that finally said, ‘We’re going to try and run it down their throats.’ They did,” said Pingree coach Mike Flynn, whose team finished the regular season 6-2 and will hope for a New England Prep School Athletic Council postseason bowl bid Sunday morning.
A fumble recovered by Jaylon Richardson gave Pingree life early on. Shortly after the turnover, senior QB Hudson Weidman hit Chris Colby for a 7-yard touchdown pass and Trevor Payne’s extra point gave the Highlanders a 7-6 lead.
Dexter embarked on a 15-play scoring drive capped by QB Joe McAuley’s keeper to take the lead for good. An interception quelled Pingree’s next drive and Carver broke free for his first score (from 35 yards) for an 18-7 halftime Dexter lead.
The third quarter spelled doom for Pingree’s comeback hopes. Dexter extended the lead on a 28-yard Carver rush, Pingree went 3-and-out, and Dexter then took the life out of the game with a 9-play scoring drive that saw Carver score once more.
Weidman threw for 144 yards, targeting Richardson (3 catches, 63 yards) and Colby (6 catches, 48 yards) regularly. Looking back, Flynn felt Pingree’s inability to sustain drives or put Dexter on its heels with a hurry-up look hurt his team’s chances.
“We’re at our best when we get in front and make teams chase,” Flynn said. “We like to play at a more frenetic pace and we let Dexter dictate the pace. A lot of it was what they did defensively, but maybe I went up-tempo too late.”
Weidman finished up the scoring with a 1-yard bootleg late in the fourth quarter. Senior Matt Theriault had 63 yards of total offense while Sam English and Cole Piaseczynski had some big plays defensively.
“We have a really good senior class with a lot of really good football players,” said Flynn. “I hate to see those guys end on their home field like this. But, hey, failure’s part of sports and it’s part of life.”
Dexter Southfield 41, Pingree 13
at Pingree School, South Hamilton
Dexter Southfield (7-1);6;12;16;7;41
Pingree (6-2);7;0;0;6;13
Scoring summary
DS- Tyson Thomas 6 run (kick blocked)
P- Chris Colby 7 pass from Hudson Weidman (Trevor Payne kick)
DS- Joe McAuley 6 run (pass failed)
DS- Quinn Carver 35 run (pass failed)
DS- Carver 28 run (Carver rush)
DS- Carver 4 run (Chase Halfkenny rush)
DS- Carver 52 run (Judah Siff kick)
P- Weidman 1 run (pass failed)
Individual Statistics
RUSHING: Dexter Southfield — Quinn Carver 24-259, Tyson Thomas 15-64, Alexander Saunders 2-9, Joe McAuley 1-6, Chase Halfkenny 1-3, ; Pingree —Hudson Weidman 9-41, Matt Theriault 11-30.
PASSING: Dexter Southfield — McAuley 5-8-66-0-0; Pingree — Weidman 12-23-144-1-2.
RECEIVING: Dexter Southfield — Carver 2-32, Joshua Berglund 1-14, Darius Day 1-14,Dominic Wadland 1-6 ; Pingree — Jaylon Richardson 3-63, Chris Colby 6-48, Theriault 3-33.