Sachems’ comeback comes up short

READING – A stout second-half performance may not have extricated the Saugus High football team from a 16-0 halftime hole in Sunday afternoon’s 22-14 loss to Austin Prep at Father Seymour Field but Coach Mike Broderick and his staff certainly have some positive building blocks for the coming week.”We played a pretty horrible first half but we were still in the game. The kids woke up in the second half and showed more spunk. We had a lot of kids step up and make some plays,” said Broderick after his club slipped to 0-3 in a meeting of teams seeking their first wins. “If we had that kind of start, maybe it’s a different outcome.”After getting moved around throughout the first half, the Saugus defense yielded only 51 net yards after intermission. C.J. Randolph (fumble recovery) and Ryan Henehan (interception) recorded turnovers. The offense picked up the pace as well, triggered by several long runs by Anthony Guthro.”We made some adjustments but it was basically that the kids just started playing. We lost three starters [to injuries] in the first half and it’s a tribute to the kids who came in for the second half. We had some kids step up and play really well,” Broderick said.The Sachems’ first-half woes began when a punt snap sailed out of the end zone, giving AP a 2-0 lead with 1:36 left in the first quarter. AP set up shop on the Saugus 46 following the ensuing free kick and converted a four-play drive highlighted by quarterback Joe Barry’s 25-yard hook-up with running back Nick Vitale to the Saugus nine. Fullback Steve Rickley plowed in from the four with 11 seconds left in the period.Saugus drove to the AP 19 to begin the second quarter but turned the ball over on downs when Austin’s 280-pound nose tackle Mark Maradei engulfed the Sachems’ 160-pound quarterback Justin Barrasso on a keeper.Two plays later the Sachems’ Tu Nguyen separated AP running back Nick Vitale from the football and Randolph recovered at the 27. The Sachems were again unable to convert when Jay Deschene intercepted and returned a pass 89 yards for an apparent touchdown.The score was wiped out by an illegal block but AP launched a 12-play, 90-yard scoring drive on which Barry completed five passes. Four went to Deschene, the last an eight-yard scoring flip on third-and-two with 58 seconds left in the half. That combo hooked up again on the two-point conversion, sending the Cougars off with a 16-0 lead at the break.”We have to do a much better job in pass coverage – those were one-receiver patterns,” Broderick noted. “The biggest thing is we missed some assignments on both sides of the ball and we have to do a better job of making sure everyone knows their assignments.”Henehan’s interception triggered the Sachems’ second-half surge. Starting from the AP 48, Guthro ripped off gains of 19 and 14 yards on a nine-play scoring drive capped by Henehan’s one-yard scoring run on fourth down. The two-point try failed but the Sachems had life, trailing 16-6 with 2:19 left in the third quarter.After the Saugus defense forced AP’s first three-and-out possession of the game, the Cougars’ Deschene recovered a muffed punt at the Saugus 25. He then hauled in the backbreaking touchdown pass of 11 yards from Barry for a 22-6 lead with 8:05 to play.Saugus countered with a quick 62-yard scoring drive that took only 2:12 off the clock and featured a Guthro gallop of 16 yards and a 35-yard connection from Randolph to Henehan. Barrasso bounced in from the three for the TD and then converted the two-point conversion as well, bringing Saugus to within 22-14 with 5:44 left.However, out of timeouts, the Sachems were unable to get the ball back.