Guillaume, Saugus prevail

SAUGUS – Any football coach will tell you it is a maxim of the game: “A win is a win.”On Saturday, Saugus pulled out an ugly win over Austin Prep at Stackpole Field, 22-18.Austin Prep18Saugus22 The game was pockmarked by turnovers by both teams ? but the game was also distinguished by the brilliant running of Saugus captain Shamir Guillaume.Click here for a photo gallery.Austin Prep and Saugus combined for a total of eight turnovers, including five from the Cougars on two fumbles and three interceptions.Guillaume, meanwhile, totaled 198 yards of rushing and two touchdowns. The touchdowns came on dead sprint runs of 44 and 57 yards.”He has the potential to break a long run at any time,” said Saugus coach Mike Broderick. “He plays hard and he is still getting his feet wet. He didn’t play last year so he is still feeling things out.”In the first half, Austin Prep (1-2) took a 6-0 lead after capitalizing on a Saugus (2-1) fumble and turnover. Cougar quarterback Joe Barry found Ryan Havey in the end zone from 12 yards out.Saugus countered in the second quarter when a pitch outside the hash marks to Guillaume resulted in his first dash to pay dirt. A Zach Verrengia extra point put the Sachems ahead 7-6 where the score stood until the fourth quarter.In the fourth, both teams started trading scores. Austin Prep running back and captain Havey scampered for 21 yards and a score to lift the Cougars to a 12-7 lead. After a quick three and out by Saugus, the ensuing Austin Prep possession was cut short by an Alex Rivera interception, giving the Sachems excellent field position at the Cougar 32. On cue, Saugus quarterback David Witham held on to the ball on an option play to the left and ran 32 yards for the score leading to a 15-12 lead.Austin Prep then took possession and two plays later, Joe Diaz scored after he broke through the line and quickly beat the Saugus secondary for a 63-yard romp. The score put Austin Prep ahead, 18-15, with 5:29 remaining in the game.Not to be outdone, Saugus took the lead for good after Guillaume cut inside the right tackle, made one move past a linebacker and beat everybody to the end zone by 10 yards on his 57-yard run.Fittingly, Austin Prep’s attempt at a comeback drive was stalled when a fumbled exchange led to Witham’s recovering the ball with under a minute remaining and sealing the win for the Sachems.”A win is a win, we’ll take it any way we can get it,” said Broderick. “Our kids were very resilient today. At first it was a battle and then we ended up in a shootout. I am proud of the way our guys fought. They could’ve given up on any play, but they didn’t.”For Saugus, Stephen Almquist had a standout defensive day. Almquist came up with two interceptions and was in on a seemingly infinite amount of tackles. Almquist also came up with a huge play for Saugus on its final scoring drive. As a fumble by the Sachems was tumbling forward, Almquist managed to recover the ball and keep possession for Saugus. Two plays later, Guillaume was celebrating his second touchdown and the Saugus win.