Andover exorcises year-long demon, rolls past Lawrence
Sep. 23—LAWRENCE — For a year, Andover High had to hear about the upset, about history and about 1984.
On Thursday, the Golden Warriors took a year of frustration out on the Lancers.
"We were definitely very motivated today," said Andover quarterback Scott Brown. "Lawrence got us last year for the first time (since 1984), and I know it ticked off a few Andover fans. So we wanted to give the fans something to enjoy tonight."
The Andover starters scored on all six possessions they played, the backups added another score and the Golden Warrior defense was dominant on the way to beating Lawrence High 42-0 on Thursday night.
"It was really, really nice to come in and win today," and Andover running back Patrick Layman, who ran for a game-high 122 yards and a score on nine carries. "We had that loss from last year on our minds all week, so everyone was going to bring it today, and we did. We were confident, and we had this one on one minds for a while."
Andover wasted no time showing there would be no repeat of 2021.
The Golden Warriors opened the game with an onside kick, which was recovered by freshman Dante Berger. That set up a 36-yard Andrew Wetterwald field goal.
The Andover defense then delivered a stop, and three plays later Brown floated a screen pass to Berger, who flew 57 yards for a touchdown. After the Golden Warriors forced a turnover on downs, Brown closed out the first quarter with a 36-yard touchdown run.
"Everyone was working on offense," said Brown, who finished 7-for-11 passing for 126 yards. "Lawrence was sending six guys on basically every play, so we had to get the ball out quick. Our line played great, Layman and Berger ran great and our receivers made some big plays."
Just four plays into the second quarter, Brown made it 22-0 with a 12-yard touchdown run. He then made it 29-0 when, on fourth down, he tossed pass into the back of the end zone that Michael Capachietti snagged and kept his feet in bounds for a 22-yard TD.
The Andover starters played just one possession the second half. Three of the four plays were Layman runs that covered 71 yards, the last a 35-yard touchdown.
"The inside zone runs were working really well," said Layman. "There were a lot of backside cuts. It was my first career 100-yard game, so that was a very special moment."
Andover allowed Lawrence just 157 yards of total offense, 30 of those in the second half. The Lancers managed seven first downs, four of them on a single drive.
Brian McSweeney and Chris Bodnaruk each had a sack and Andrew Magner recovered a fumble for the Golden Warriors.
Yorlando Tilleria was a bright spot for Lawrence with two sacks and another big tackle for a loss. Capachietti caught four passes for 49 yards.
"I was really pleased with our guys," said Andover coach E.J. Perry. "I enjoy like this group because they come to work every day and have a lot of pride, and the coaching staff is doing a tremendous job. and Scotty Brown is playing out of his mind, and it's a lot of fun to watch. We're very pleased.
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