BOXFORD — The Masconomet Chieftains lost an absolute nailbiter in the opening round of the Division 3 state football playoffs Friday night, falling 24-15 to Milford at Roberts Field.
The Chieftains were coming off of their bye week and entered the game with a 6-2 record and the No. 8 seed. But they couldn’t inch their way past the ninth seeded Scarlet Hawks of Milford, whose record (3-5 coming in) was deceiving, considering the level of competition they faced during the regular season. They displayed high level offensive performance which ultimately proved too much for Masconomet to handle.
“We’re fighters. We gave ourselves chances, we earned tons of opportunities,” Masconomet head coach Pat Sheehan stated after the game. “These kids have worked really hard. We just didn’t make the plays we needed to make.”
Up until the end of the fourth quarter, this game was within one score the entire night.
Following a first possession touchdown from Milford, Masconomet responded in a two-possession drive, resulting in a score of their own. Junior tailback Jack Fabiano, following a 4-yard run, took one 61 yards to the house, then ran in the 2-point conversion for an 8-6 lead.
Fabiano finished the day with 11 carries for 96 yards on the ground and two catches for 13 yards.
Later on in the second quarter, Masconomet junior quarterback Drew Gustafson led a quite impressive drive. He ran for 21 yards (all coming on option plays) before finishing it off with a 30-yard scoring strike to star receiver Cal Weidman.
Following this touchdown was a gutsy play call by Sheehan that worked in the moment. Nicco Cefalo executed an onside kick to perfection, which at the time felt like a shift in momentum. Masco had the ball with a little over two minutes left in the half with great field position, but were just unable to execute anything under the pressure of the clock.
Despite coming up empty handed, the surprise was a very well executed play that was practiced by the Chieftains over the course of the season.
“We had a bye week last week and spent a lot of time one special teams. It’s something we focus on a lot,” Sheehan emphasized. “We don’t work on that just to keep it in the tank; Cefalo is great and he executed it perfectly.”
Unfortunately, Masconomet was unable to continue this energy and was shut out in the second half. Four straight possessions yielded just three first down in the third quarter, and the eventual nail was put into the coffin when Milford defender Andrew Rivera picked off Gustafson in the fourth quarter, cutting of all hope of a comeback for the hosts.
Rivera had his fingerprints all over this one. In the backfield he had 10 rushes for 22 yards and two touchdowns for Milford while catching three passes for another 54 yards.
Other Milford touchdowns came from a Daniel Carvalho 5-yard reception in the first quarter from quarterback Jack Buckley. Following a 5-yard TD run from Rivera in the second quarter, the Scarlet Hawks rounded out their scoring with a 22-yard field goal by kicker Joey McGee.
Milford’s offense combined quick passes and an array of running concepts that eventually let them sneak past Masconomet.
Now bounced from the postseason, the Chieftains will play a non-playoff game next weekend before setting their sights on their season finale Thanksgiving Day against Northeast Regional.
“They should be nothing but proud of the season they’ve put together. They’ve bought in and done everything they needed to do,” Sheehan said of his players. “We’re disappointed … but these last three weeks should be exciting.”
Milford 24, Masconomet 15
Division 3 first round
at Walt Roberts Field, Boxford
Milford (4-5);6;8;0;11;24
Masconomet (6-3);8;7;0;0;15
Scoring summary
Mil — Daniel Carvahlo 5 pass from Jack Buckley (kick failed)
Mas — Jack Fabiano 61 run (Fabiano rush)
Mil — Andrew Rivera 5 run (Jack Buckley rush)
Mas — Cal Weidman 30 pass from Drew Gustafson (Nicco Cefalo kick)
Mil — Joey McGee 22 field goal
Mil — Rivera 4 run (McGee kick)
Individual Statistics
RUSHING: Milford — Jason Stokes 6-32, Daniel Carvahlo 5-24, Andrew Rivera 10-22, Jack Buckley 7-22; Masconomet — Jack Fabiano 11-96, Drew Gustafson 10-66, Davis Deluties 3-12, Ryan Richardson 1-6.
PASSING: Milford — Buckley 11-20-151-1-0; Masconomet — Gustafson 9-24-86-1-2.
RECEIVING: Milford — Carvahlo 6-83, Rivera 3-54, Stokes 5-28, Ishmael Kamara 3-17; Masconomet — Gavin Harlor 6-43, Cal Weidman 1-30, Fabiano 2-13.