Lynn Tech football can’t stop Whittier

HAVERHILL – Lynn Tech controlled tempo for much of the first half against Whittier Saturday – that is, until a closing sequence that turned momentum the Wildcats’ way and sent them off to a 30-8 win.Leading, 8-6, the Tigers pinned Whittier at its own 26 with 1:34 left in the half but yielded a five-play, 74-yard scoring drive that ended with Andrew McGrath’s first of three TDs and his two-point conversion.In response, the Tigers moved to the Whittier 17 thanks to Kennedy Gomes’ 36-yard completion to Luis Tavares. But Gomes was sacked on the final play of the half; Tech exited trailing, 14-8. The Tigers (1-3; 7-3) never regained the handle on this Commonwealth Large clash.”I’m proud of the way we played – we gave a hard-nosed effort and I thought the offensive line was tremendous,” said Tech coach James Runner, who was less enthralled with some of Whittier’s antics.”They were taunting after the play, jabbering,” Runner said. “We don’t play that way, we don’t do dirty stuff and there’s no need for it.”Whittier’s single wing attack popped for 267 rushing yards on 41 attempts, driven by the senior McGrath (11 carries, 147 yards, 3 TDs). The Wildcats didn’t attempt a single pass.”The problem it presents is that it makes the defense stay grounded – you can’t react until you see where the play goes. We hung in there and I thought we did a good job taking away their bread and butter plays, but they also had some plays they hadn’t shown before,” Runner said.Five players carried on Whittier’s game-opening 12-play, 56-yard scoring drive that took more than six minutes. Victor Munoz picked up the tough yards inside and Shane Surrette finished it on a one-yard run. The two-point rush failed.Tech had a 46-yard drive, but it died at the Whittier 11 when Mike Melling picked off Gomes. After forcing Whittier to punt, Tech needed just two plays to counter when Gomes swept left, found the edge and easily pulled away for a 69-yard TD run. Pedro Martinez punched in the conversion for an 8-6 Tech lead with 6:28 left in the half.On the first play following the kickoff, Joel Devaney recovered a Surrette fumble at the Whittier 48. Tech advanced to the 24 but Billy Colon was dropped for a two-yard loss on fourth-and-one. McGrath’s 50-yard first-down burst set up the Wildcats for the go-ahead score, and he added two second-half TDs on runs of 39 and 24 yards.Gomes had another stellar performance in defeat, amassing 214 all-purpose yards – 116 rushing, 84 passing and 14 receiving. Martinez pounded the interior for 35 yards on eight carries.Runner said the loss has no impact on the Tigers’ hopes of gaining a Vocational School playoff berth.”That wasn’t one of the games we designated. I think we’re in good shape but we won’t know for certain until later in the week, probably Wednesday,” Runner said.