RallyNorth.net

Methuen Rangers Football '11

Sat, Sep 17, 2011 01:30 PM @ Malden
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
Methuen 7 7 6 6 26
Malden 0 6 6 8 20

Defense keeps Methuen undefeated

  • Currently 0.0 with 0 votes.
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Saturday, September, 17 By Jeff Hamrick

MALDEN — For most of the afternoon, yardage came tough for Methuen, but the Rangers got untracked when it mattered most.


Returning Eagle-Tribune all-star Ryan Savastano, who missedlast week’s season opener with a rib injury, capped off a 4-minute, 90-yard drive with what proved to be the game-winning score and the Rangers held off Malden for a 26-20 victory yesterday.


Savastano, who finished with 75 yards on 22 tough carries, finished off Methuen’s 11-play possession with an 11-yard run with 4:15 left that gave the Rangers a 26-12 lead.


“I was anxious,” said Savastano, who finished with a 75 yards and two touchdowns on 22 tough carries and. “I just wanted to get back out here and play with my boys, and keep they’re heads up.
“(Malden) had a lot of hard hitters ... There wasn’t one play when I didn’t take a nice hit.”


Eric Lacroix and receiver Corey Shepherd hooked up on a pair of scoring passes on Methuen’s first possessions in both halves. On the game’s third play from scrimmage it was a 74-yard scoring pass. After intermission, they connected on a 23-yarder wo plays after Jamie McInerney recovered a muffed kickoff return by Malden.


But for most of the game, Methuen’s offense was stymied. The Rangers, who continuously tried pounding between tackles, managed only 99 yards on 41 rushing attempts (2.4 yard average).


“We worked hard all week on plays, but they gave us a different look when we got out here,” said Lacroix, who had 199 yards on 15 of 25 passing. “So, we had to switch up the offense on the first couple series, and that was tough because we have some new guys and they had to sort of go on the fly. But they picked it up pretty nicely because 26 points is good for an offense that came out and saw something we don’t normally see.”


What Methuen lacked on offense, the Rangers made up for with a solid defensive effort that held the Golden Tornados to 136 yards and only five first downs until Malden’s final possession of the game. Malden, which cut its third-quarter deficit to 20-12 on a 76-yard return of a Lacroix fumble, made the final score closer on O’Shane McCreath’s second touchdown with 1:22 remaining.


“I was real happy with the way our defense played,” Methuen coach Tom Tone said. “I thought we did a great job containing those guys. We gave up that late touchdown, but for most of the game we held those guys to six points.”

Game Statistics:

First Quarter

Methuen — Corey Shepherd 74 pass from Eric Lacroix (Lacroix kick), 10:05

Second Quarter

Methuen — Ryan Savastano 1 run (Lacroix kick), 6:55

Malden — O'Shane McCreath 14 run (kick failed), 4:52

Third Quarter

Methuen — Shepherd 23 pass from Lacroix (kick failed), 10:26

Malden — Raymond Sainristil 76 fumble return (kick failed), 6:21

Fourth Quarter

Methuen — Savastano 11 run (kick failed), 4:15

Malden — McCreath 1 run (Austin Teal pass from Jacob Martino), 1:22


INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

RUSHING: Methuen (41-99) — 22-75. Lacroix 18-24, William Weinhold 1-0; Malden (24-102) — McCreath 16-82, martino 7-19, Wtichevalence Exilhomme 1-1

PASSING: Methuen — Lacroix 15-25-0, 199 yards; Malden — Martino 10-22-1, 102

RECEIVING: Methuen — Shepherd 7-139, Colin Langford 4-34, Dylan Doucette 2-22, Austin George-Williams 1-3, Savastano 1-1; Malden — Exilhomme 4-42, Austin Teal 2-26, Jamie McInerney 2-6, Garvin Cius 1-22, McCreath 1-6

0 Story Comments