Late fumble recovery boots Big Blue over Winthrop

WINTHROP – Miller Field looked like a mudpit by the second half of Friday’s game between Winthrop and Swampscott. But the two teams survived the elements and put on a dramatic finish.With the Vikings driving towards a potential game-winning field goal, Mother Nature finally reared her ugly head. Quarterback Will Milano fumbled on an attempt to spike the ball with 44 seconds and the Big Blue recovered to escape with a 14-12 win over the Vikings.”We did what we had to do,” Swampscott coach Steve Dembowski said. “Everybody played hard.”The Vikings played admirably considering they had probably one of the hardest weeks of any team on the North Shore this season with the aftermath of the death of head coach Sean Driscoll’s father.”I am so proud of the kids for stepping up the way they did,” Driscoll said. “It was a tough week, obviously. But the assistant coaches did a great job of keeping them focused and they played tough against a good team (Friday).”A light rain greeted the teams at kickoff but by halftime, it had turned into a monsoon which turned the area between the hashmarks into a quagmire. But the two teams handled the adverse conditions admirably.Until Milano’s fumble in the waining seconds, there had been been only two turnovers in the game (a Joe McDermott fumble in the third quarter and a Chris Beranger fumble late in the second).”The referee was right on with that last call,” Driscoll said. “We had some serious ball issues on that last drive.”The last drive Driscoll refered to begain at the Viking 15 with 4:28 left after Swampscott punted following a false start penalty at the 35.”I didn’t want to take the chance of giving them the ball back at the 40,” Dembowski said. “We didn’t want them to have the short field and the defense responded.”Winthrop (3-4) moved the ball out to the 29, where they faced fourth-and-six with just over three minutes remaining. Milano rolled left and threw a wounded duck pass up the right sideline.Swampscott defensive back Trevor Wheeler looked like he was going to intercept the ball, but Chris Beranger out jumped him to make the catch at midfield.Beranger then bobbled twice on a pair of carries but helped the Vikings reach the Swampscott 31 with 58 seconds left. Milano picked up a first down on fourth-and-one and then lined up to spike the ball. But the snap slipped through his hands and Swampscott pounced on the ball at the 29 to save the win.Swampscott (6-1) was able to get on the board first as the Big Blue put together a 12 play, 54 yard drive that ended early in the second quarter with a Peter Kinchley one-yard draw from the shotgun.The Vikings responded immediately thanks to the running of McDermott and Beranger, who also caught an 18-yard screen pass. McDermott closed the drive with a 2-yard plunge that made it 7-6, setting up what turned out to be the pivotal play of the game.Nick Leonard booted home the extra point, but the Vikings were called for a false start. On the second try from the eight, Leonard’s kick was blocked to keep it 7-6.Beranger then had a 65 yard touchdown run called back by a holding penalty which eventually led to a punt with 1:49 left.The Big Blue took over at its 22 and drove 78 yards in 11 plays culminating a nine yard touchdown pass to Trevor Wheeler with 12 seconds left that gave Swampscott a 14-6 halftime lead.”On a night like this you have to take the points you can get and that drive at the end of the half was huge,” Dembowski said.