English outlasts Swampscott at Manning

LYNN – The points were coming fast and furious for Swampscott and Lynn English on Friday night at Manning Field. By the time the two teams were done turning the FieldTurf into their own personal playground, 72 points and 791 yards of offense had been put up.In a game dominated by offense, it was the English defense that came up with a huge stop of Kyle Shonio’s 2-point conversion with 1:55 remaining that preserved a 37-35 win on a frigid evening.Click here for a photo gallery.”It’s never over when you’re playing against those guys,” English coach Peter Holey said. “I certainly wasn’t comfortable when we had that big lead with seven minutes left.”The lead Holey referred to came when Tyllor McDonald (112 yards rushing, 128 passing) turned a bad snap into an 11-yard touchdown run that staked the Bulldogs to a 37-22 lead with 7:40 to go.”English has some fabulous athletes,” Swampscott coach Steve Dembowski said. “And they made us look silly at times.”The Big Blue (4-2) responded with an efficient drive on the right arm of Matt Barbuzzi (19-of-28, 171 yards) and the legs of Kyle Shonio (173 yards). Shonio converted a third down early in the drive before Barbuzzi used his legs and arm effectively to bring the ball to the Bulldog 32.A pass interference call on English moved the ball inside the 20. Two plays later, Barbuzzi found tight end Peter Yasi wide open down the seam for a 19-yard score that made it 37-29 with 4:02 to go.An illegal block in the back call on the ensuing kickoff pushed the Bulldogs back to their 23. Patterson and McDonald then had a miscommunication on a handoff, which resulted in Carl Zeller pouncing on the loose ball at the 20.Four plays later, Shonio powered his way in from the three to cut the lead to two. The senior got the call again on the 2-point conversion try, but the English defensive line swarmed him short of the goal line.The Big Blue then went for the onside kick but English recovered at the Swampscott 46. McDonald raced 30 yards a play later to ensure the victory.”Tyllor keeps getting better with every game,” Holey said. “He’s one of the best players in our league, and he’s not only a quarterback, but a running back.”The finish was a fitting climax to a game that started fast and stayed that way the rest of the night.English took the opening kickoff and marched 57 yards on eight plays, all on the ground, culminating in Taron Seaforth’s six-yard score on a reverse. After forcing a three-and-out on Swampscott’s first possession, English needed only three plays to strike as Patterson rumbled 32 yards down the left sideline for a 12-0 lead.The Big Blue came right back as a 44-yard pitch and catch from Barbuzzi to Randall Kelleher got the ball to the English 23. Three plays later, Barbuzzi kept on an option play and raced 12 yards untouched to make it 12-7 after one.The senior quarterback found the end zone again early in the second quarter when he capped a 13-play, 99-yard drive with a two-yard keeper for a 14-12 Swampscott lead. Shonio had provided the big play on the drive earlier when he raced 51 yards from his 10.English drove to the Swampscott 23 on the next series but was stopped on downs. The Big Blue then dipped into their bag of tricks as Shonio went for 23 yards on a fake punt. But it was all for naught as Barbuzzi fumbled with 1:02 left.The Bulldogs capitalized on the turnover in the final seconds of the half when McDonald hit Travonne Berry-Rogers for a 29-yard touchdown and an 18-14 halftime lead.The teams would trade touchdown passes in the third quarter before Patterson made it 30-14 with his second touchdown run to set the stage for the frantic final 11 minutes.