East Lynn Pop Warner C squad quarterback Lucas Harris took the snap and knelt down, killing the clock as it wound down to 0:00.Victory was well in hand. A first down a few plays back had settled that. Worcester was out of timeouts, having burned its last on its previous touchdown drive.All coach Bob Maitland had to do was wait. He knew that playing in the national championships at Disney World was no longer a dream, but a reality.Click here for a photo gallery from the game.”I can’t describe how it feels,” he said after the C squad beat Worcester, 20-12, to win the New England Regional championship and become the first team in Lynn history to make it to the nationals. “It’s surreal.”He found his brother, Mark, one of his assistants, and they exchanged some emotional tears of happiness.”He was going to retire, but he got talked into coming back this year,” Maitland said. “Between us, we have 30 years of coaching. We can’t believe this is happening.””This” is an improbable run in which the East Lynn C Squad Bulldogs have rolled through the postseason tournament the same way they waltzed through the regular season: in dominating fashion. The defense has pitched 11 shutouts in 13 games, and has earned its reputation as one of the best in the region.For three quarters yesterday, it looked as if that defense was going to throw another shutout until Worcester ripped off a couple of late TDs.Worcester – which had been favored among those who study the Pop Warner circuit by as much as two touchdowns – looked as if it would open the game with a nice touchdown drive until Isaiah Davis ripped the ball away from one of its running backs at the end of a 25-yard run ? and ran back it 20 yards the other way.From there, the offense found its rhythm quickly, with Harris hitting Stevie Collins with a 20-yard touchdown pass – and with Davis diving in for the extra point – to make it 7-0 seven minutes into the game.A little early-game trickery resulted in touchdown No. 2 for the Bulldogs. They seized the moment by executing an onside kick and getting the ball back at midfield. With Davis chewing up yardage on the ground, East Lynn got all the way down to the Worcester 10. Davis took it in from there on a pitchout and a sweep. Feeling fully confident at this point, the Bulldogs did some more razzle-dazzle, with Collins hitting Scott Brazell on a halfback option pass for the extra point.The score stayed at 14-0 until the third quarter, when Davis, Collins and Brendan Kahari again began chewing up yardage until East Lynn had a first-and-goal on the seven. Harris got the call this time, running a quarterback draw straight up the middle to make it 20-0.Worcester, which had been driving as the third quarter ended, put one in at the beginning of the fourth quarter on a play that Maitland disputed.”Their kid fumbled at around the two, and I didn’t think he had possession of it as he went into the end zone,” he said.After holding East Lynn to a three-and-out on the next possession, Worcester scored again to close the gap to 20-12. But Lynn got the ball back, got a key first down, and ran out the clock to preserve the win.”My defense proved itself again today,” said Maitland. “We shut down the most high-powered offense in the state for three quarters. These guys have been doing it week in and week out.”Central to the defensive effort were Max McGough (10 tackles, five for losses), Kyle O’Connor (interception), Davis (interception, fumble recovery), Chewy Newhall, Zach Lozzi, Schuyler Hogan, Billy Carey, Danny Kane and Jack Leonard.”Five times, my teams have been sent home by squads that have gone on to the nationals,” Maitland said. “So this is like having a huge monkey taken off our backs.”