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Unbeaten Windham stunned by Plymouth in semis

WINDHAM — Trailing at the half, Windham fans stood resolute, adamant that their team would eventually kick it into high gear.

The clock kept ticking.

Senior linebacker and runaway freight train Victor Pizzotti scored on a 1-yard rush to pull Windham closer, and then laid a huge hit on a Plymouth running back on the ensuing drive. Fans thought surely that would be the moment which got the Jaguars back on track.

The clock kept ticking.

Down 20-18 with a minute left and no timeouts remaining, Windham’s defense came up with a stop on a 4th and 1 that would have ended the game, giving the Jaguars possession in enemy territory with a chance to win.

Fans jumped and high-fived each other in joy. It would be ugly, but a win is a win.

The clock kept ticking.

A few players later, Windham’s desperation pass on fourth down was picked off, but a roughing the passer call gave Windham yet another life, and a chance at a last second field goal.

The Jaguars lined up, the ball was snapped, the kick went up and a second later it was swatted back. Everyone watched in awe as 22 players raced for the lose ball. It was eventually recovered by Windham, but at that point it didn’t matter.

There was no more time left.

No. 4 Plymouth (9-2), having defeated defending Division 2 champion St. Thomas last week, came in and stunned top-ranked, undefeated Windham, 20-18 Saturday afternoon in the Division 2 semifinals.

Windham, a team which had beat its opponents by an average of 39.1 points in its first 10 games, never held a lead.

“It was a hard-fought game and we knew we were going to get that out of them, especially knowing what they did to St. Thomas last week,” said Windham coach Bill Raycraft. “We knew they had it in them. They were a little banged up as well so all credit to the coaches for putting that game plan together.”

Windham (10-1) put together another sensational season, but after losing in the championship game last year, the Jaguars fell one game short of that mark.

Plymouth scored first on a 57-yard run by Garrett Macomber in the first quarter. Windham answered quickly when sophomore quarterback Cody Potter hit Micah Sundman for a 24-yard touchdown pass early in the second. The Jaguars missed the extra point, and a Plymouth field goal gave the Bobcats a 10-6 lead at the half.

The Jaguars got the ball to start the second half, but after a turnover on downs Plymouth drove and scored on a 2-yard rush by quarterback Brandon Roy.

Pizzotti scored his first touchdown of the game on the first play of the fourth quarter, but another Bobcat field goal made it 20-12 midway through the fourth.

After a stop on defense, Plymouth got possession back at their own 15 with four minutes left, but a fumble gave Windham the ball with great field position. Pizzotti scored his second TD of the game with 1:52 left, but the conversion pass failed.

Parker Belsky led Windham with 83 yards on 15 carries. Pizzotti added 69 yards on 21 carries, but the Jaguars struggled against a large Plymouth defensive line.

“We’ve seen some big lines this year,” said Raycraft. “Plymouth just has the whole package. They got a great running back. They had a nice pass at the end and they’re not known for throwing it. They made plays, but I couldn’t be more proud of my guys for the way they battled through adversity and gave us a shot to win it at the end.”

Pizzotti and Belsky each played well defensively. Linemen Mike Furey also laid some big hits, and came up with the tackle on Plymouth’s final fourth down.

“I have a great amount of love for these guys,” said Raycraft. “They’re a special group and we’ll certainly miss the seniors. But already you’re seeing in the eyes of the underclassmen that they’re going to put in the work to make sure we get back here next year.”