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Malden beats Methuen in final minute

MALDEN — Malden scored on a 14-yard gimmick pass on a 4th-and-7 with 30 seconds left to pin a heartbreaking 37-35 loss on Methuen.
The Rangers had battled back from 10 down in the fourth quarter of their opener but a gamble backfired.
Methuen had racked up approximately 400 yards on the ground but couldn’t get six inches when it needed to. Coach Tom Ryan elected to go for it on fourth down and less than a foot on the Ranger 30 with about two minutes left.
That set up the hosts with a short field and they capitalized.
“If you can’t get 6 inches, you don’t deserve to win,” said Ryan.
Of the winning TD pass, Ryan said, “It was a flop pass. The (receiver) pretends to flop. They have to throw across the field. The defense we had in wasn’t conducive to defending the play.”
Brian McAndrew, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in Game 2 last fall, rushed for about 200 yards and scored four touchdowns.
He scored a 75-yarder in the fourth then the go-ahead score on a 5-yard run with five minutes to play.
In the fourth, Eric Rosario had an interception and Chris Saba recovered a fumble to fuel the Ranger comeback.
Methuen will christen the renovated Nicholson Stadium Friday when the Rangers host Andover at 7 p.m.