RallyNorth.net

Fumbles, penalties can't slow Pelham

Friday, September, 12 By Chris Helms
Staff writer

PELHAM, N.H. - Bruce Vieira stole the show with three touchdowns and an interception, but for Vieira and the Pythons, things were in their proper perspective during Friday's game against the Trinity Pioneers.

"You know, it's not about touchdowns, it's not about interceptions," the senior captain explained. "Tonight was all for him."

The "him" to which Vieira referred is Robert Maille (Class of 2004), who passed away in August due to injuries sustained in a swimming pool accident. It's a loss that reverberated throughout the entire Pelham community, prompting the Pythons to dedicate the 2008 season to Maille.

"This year's all for Robbie," concluded Vieira. "He'll always be a member of the program. Our heart and respect goes out to him and his family."

In addition to Vieira's visual displays – he could often be seen holding up seven fingers to symbolize Rob's No. 7 jersey – the Pythons went a long way to commemorating the loss of their friend and former teammate in the gritty 29-14 victory.

With a constant drizzle blanketing the field, both offenses had trouble passing and shifted their focus to the run. The first quarter concluded in a scoreless tie, but Trinity got on the board five minutes into the second quarter on a 57-yard touchdown run by Connor Lyons. Sean Lyons' conversion run made it 8-0 Trinity.

Pelham was able to pull even before the close of the first half on a 16-play, 85-yard drive that culminated on Timothy Shaffer's 1-yard touchdown run and Joshua Luciano's quarterback keeper for the conversion.

The start of the second half had a markedly different feel and it was evident in Vieira's 38-yard kickoff return. Vieira did the bulk of his damage in the second half and ended the game with 166 yards on 21 carries. Although he couldn't get anything going through the air (0-for-3 passing), Luciano finished the game with 63 rushing yards on 16 attempts.

Vieira scored the game's next three touchdowns as the defending Division 5 state champs put the game well out of reach by the time Trinity's Tyrell Skinner ran back a kickoff 87 yards for the score with 4:14 to go in the game.

It was hardly what you'd call a flawless game from Pelham's perspective as they finished the game with five fumbles and five penalties, but they were able to improve to 2-0 and stepped up and made the plays when it counted most.

"We're a very humble team," Vieira noted. "A win was all we needed and that's what we did today."