Breaking down all of Week 4 high school football action for SouthCoast teams
Both Apponequet and Dartmouth football teams are hitting their stride right now, giving Friday night’s non-league matchup the potential to be a good one.
After opening the season with a 9-7 loss to Bishop Stang, Dartmouth has won back-to-back games, including a 24-21 thriller over Old Rochester last week that came down to the wire.
“We played hard,” said Dartmouth head coach Rick White. They played hard. We just made a few more plays than they did in the second half and we held on.”
Dartmouth’s defense, which had just allowed a combined nine points in the first two games, came up big down the stretch with Eli Johnson finishing with 12 tackles and Graham White intercepting an ORR pass in the end zone with less than two minutes to play.
“They definitely fly to the ball,” said Apponequet head coach Zane Fyfe. “They’re aggressive. They close up open lanes quickly. They play tough. It’s going to be tough running the ball against them.”
Following a 35-14 loss to Middleboro in Week 1, the Lakers have won two straight games and scored 30 or more points both times.
“The kids are really coming into their own,” Fyfe said. “The offense in Week 1, we played a lot better than the score indicated because of turnovers. Week 2 we still had things that put us in bad positions. Last week we really started to get that groove. Everybody has started to fit together. They’re working well off each other.”
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In his first year starting at quarterback, Apponequet senior Harrison Lemieux has thrown three touchdowns passes and rushed for another two scores.
“Harry is really taking on the leadership role,” Fyfe said. “With him taking over at QB duties, he’s understanding what we’re trying to do and understanding where we want to go with the ball.”
Senior running back Jackson Gagnier had a breakout performance last week against Seekonk, rushing for 247 yards on 12 carries and scoring three touchdowns. He has four TDs on the season.
“I think they’re good,” White said. “I think they’re a lot like Rochester. They have a good back in Gagnier. He’s one of the better backs in the area. The quarterback seems to be hitting his stride right now. They’ve got good receivers and a good tight end. I think we’ll have our hands full.”
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Dartmouth’s offense enjoyed a breakthrough performance against ORR in Week 3. After scoring a combined 14 points in the first two games, Dartmouth put 24 on the board against the Bulldogs.
Junior quarterback Nikko Morris, a first-year starter, carried the ball 14 times for 47 yards and completed six of nine passes for 89 yards and a touchdown to Graham White. Sophomore running back Ray Gramlich had over 100 rushing yards and scored a touchdown.
“Our offensive line played much better than in the previous two games,” Coach White said. “I thought Morris did a nice job of running the ball.”
Fyfe agreed, “Just watching the ORR film, they found their groove a little bit. They were more aggressive and moved off the ball. We’re going to have our hands full.”
Dartmouth at Apponequet
When: Friday, 6:30 p.m.
Records: Dartmouth (2-1); Apponequet (2-1)
Last week: Dartmouth 24, Old Rochester 21; Apponequet 36, Seekonk 6
Old Rochester at GNB Voc-Tech
When: Friday, 6:30 p.m.
Records: Old Rochester (1-1); GNB Voc-Tech (1-2)
Last week: Dartmouth 24, Old Rochester 21; Fairhaven 18, GNB Voc-Tech 0
Outlook: Both teams are looking to get back on track this week. The Bears, who opened the season with a win over Southeastern, have lost back-to-back games, getting shut out both times. They’ve been able to move the ball thanks to the playmaking ability of junior quarterback Jhaden Reis and sophomore running back Aliaz Colon, but have struggled to finish off drives. Twice Voc-Tech got within the Fairhaven 15-yard line and came away with no points. Old Rochester, which had a Week 1 bye, opened the season with a win over Bishop Stang, but fell to Dartmouth last week despite having a shot to win it at the end. Turnovers and penalties hurt the Bulldogs. Senior quarterback Noah Sommers connected on a pair of touchdown passes and senior running back Walter Rosher added a pair of rushing TDs to his 139 yards.
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Fairhaven at Bourne
When: Friday, 6:30 p.m.
Records: Fairhaven (3-0); Bourne (1-2)
Last week: Fairhaven 18, GNB Voc-Tech 0; Cape Cod Tech 28, Bourne 21
Outlook: No one has been able to stop the undefeated Blue Devils and the rushing attack of sophomore Justin Marques, who has found the end zone nine times in the first three games. In last week’s win over Fairhaven, Marques carried the ball 19 times for 111 yards and scored three touchdowns. He also came up with some big plays on defense as Fairhaven shut out the Bears. Fairhaven’s defense has allowed 26 combined points in three games while the offense is averaging 24 points per game. After opening the season with a 29-22 win over Upper Cape, Bourne has lost back-to-back games to South Shore Voc-Tech and Cape Cod Tech. The young Canalmen started four freshmen last week. Junior quarterback Ty Kelley threw for one touchdown and ran for another score.
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Bishop Stang at Arlington Catholic
When: Friday, 6 p.m.
Records: Bishop Stang (2-1); Arlington Catholic (2-1)
Last week: Bishop Stang 36, Cardinal Spellman 20; Arlington Catholic 40, Archbishop Williams 7
Outlook: The Spartans enjoyed a breakout on offense last week as they scored five touchdowns and won the turnover battle for their second victory of the season. Luca Cincotta continues to progress at the quarterback position. He threw one touchdown pass and had a pair of rushing TDs while Michael Golden and Tyrone Gomes each had one. Jackson Tingley-Prince, who caught the scoring strike, had two interceptions on defense. Last week Arlington Catholic put 40 points on the scoreboard thanks to another big showing from quarterback Isaiah Osgood, a dual threat who had two rushing touchdowns and two passing TDs.
New Bedford at Lincoln-Sudbury
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Records: New Bedford (0-3); Lincoln-Sudbury (0-3)
Last week: Attleboro 20, New Bedford 0; Brockton 42, Lincoln-Sudbury 34
Outlook: Something has got to give this week in a matchup of winless teams. The Whalers have lost their first three games by a combined score of 95-19 and failed to score in last week’s loss to Attleboro. Inexperience on the offensive and defensive lines has been a struggle for New Bedford, which has won just one game total in the past two plus seasons. Lincoln-Sudbury has managed to find the end zone the last two weeks, scoring a combined 54 points after being shut out in Week 1. The Warriors have struggled defensively, giving up an average of 32.7 points per game. Lincoln-Sudbury returns just one player — senior WR/LB Mason Greenfield — from last year’s team that went 9-1 and reached the Division 2 state quarterfinals.
Old Colony at Upper Cape
When: Saturday, 12 p.m.
Records: Old Colony (3-0); Upper Cape (0-3)
Last week: Old Colony 54, Case 0; South Shore 6, Upper Cape 0
Outlook: After getting off to a slow start in their Week 1 win over Bristol-Plymouth, the Cougars have been red hot, scoring a combined 86 points in their last two games while shutting out both Cape Cod Tech and Case. Senior Matt McGuiggan has been a playmaker on both sides of the ball as he has scored two defensive touchdowns — on a pick six and a fumble recovery for a score. He’s one of three players to have three touchdowns on the season. Chris Egan and Shawn Markham are the other two. The Cougars have done most of their damage on the ground with 12 rushing touchdowns. The Cougars take on an Upper Cape team that has scored a total of just 30 points through the first three games and was shut out last week by South Shore.
This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Week 4 high school football preview for SouthCoast teams
