WINDHAM — With the rain pouring down, and the natural grass on Mount Jaguar turning to muck and mud, Windham trusted the ball to the perfect running back for the occasion.
It was Tiger An time.
The senior workhorse dominated in the sloppy conditions, grinding his way to 186 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries, as Windham snapped a four-game skid by rolling past Manchester Central 28-0 on Saturday.
“Tiger really stood out today,” said Jags head coach Jack Byrne. “He’s just so dependable and so strong with the ball. We needed that in this weather. He really did his thing. He helped us control the ball and control the clock. He’s an excellent weapon to have in the pouring rain.”
An rushed for a 4-yard score in the second quarter, then iced the victory with a 5-yard TD run in the fourth quarter. He’s now scored 11 touchdowns on the season.
“Windham is back,” said An. “It definitely wasn’t easy to play in weather like this, but it’s definitely nothing new to us. The big guys up front did a great job making holes for me, making my job just that much easier.”
Chris Brearley gave Windham the lead just 1:14 into the game, when he broke free for a 53-yard touchdown run.
Quarterback Billy DePietro added the Jaguars’ third score, a 4-yard QB keeper with 4:31 to go in the third.
That was more than enough for the Windham defense, which dominated a Little Green offense that scored 21 points against Salem a week earlier.
“Rain or shine our team is always excited and ready to play,” said Dylan Roy, who led the Jags from his defensive back spot. “It’s good to come out with a win, but we have to focus and build off this W!”
Byrne was very impressed by the way his defense responded, locking down the crucial win.
“It’s easy to make a mistake when the rain is pouring,” said Byrne. “But our guys made open field tackles, which is tough. It’s tough to shut a team out in bad footing. Dylan Roy played excellent for us on defense, and had a huge first down on offense.
“The special teams unit also came up big. We made all four extra points, and every point counts. And our kicker, Seamus Ross, kicked a great onside kick that we recovered. It was a great team win.”