DANVERS – It may have been their first regular-season game, but Saturday afternoon?s showdown between St. John?s Prep and Bridgewater-Raynham had a playoff-like feel. After a nightmarish first half, the host Eagles nearly overcame a 21-point deficit before succumbing 21-14 at Cronin Field.?This was our first game with a very young defense and I am real proud of the way they played today,” said Prep coach Jim O?Leary. “We had a bad start but kept fighting and made a comeback and played hard until the end.”The Eagles deferred to start the game and the Trojans got right to work, embarking on a 12-play, 80-yard drive. Running back Brandon Gallagher carried the load, running for 55 yards on the drive and capping it off with a three-yard touchdown run.The visitors? defense looked equally as impressive their first time out, holding the Eagles to a four-and-out. Highly-touted running back Johnathan Thomas was dropped for a four-yard loss before two straight incompletions from Michael Geaslen brought on the punter.The Trojans? second drive lasted all of 46 seconds as quarterback Matt Clement connected with a wide-open Ryan Martin on a 44-yard touchdown down the right sideline. The Prep offense came up empty on two more drives before Bridgewater expanded the lead to 21.On third and six, Clement hit tight end Connor Reagan with a 20-yard pass before Gallagher willed his way to the two. On an ensuing fourth and goal, a Trojans gamble paid off as Clement surprised everyone by rolling out to the right and finding Arcel Armstead for the score.?That happening right before the half killed us and we did it to ourselves,” explained O?Leary. “We had a dumb penalty (a 15-yarder for interfering with the punt returner) and they took the ball and went down and scored.”The tides turned in the second half as the Eagles offense finally awoke. A six-play drive highlighted by a 21-yard reception by Owen Rockett gave way to Thomas finding pay dirt from six yards out.The hosts? defense also came alive in the half, limiting the Trojans to three fruitless drives before a Gallagher fumble with 3:39 remaining in the game. The Prep capitalized quickly as Geaslen hit Rockett and Jake Burt with 10-yard completions before Thomas wiggled loose from traffic for a 24-yard score at 2:21.An ensuing onside kick nearly paid off as the ball deflected off a Trojan player before an alert teammate managed to dive on the loose ball. With the game on the line, the Eagles defense forced a three-and-out, but a running into the kicker penalty ultimately ended the game. “We lost to a great football team that plays physical and is well-coached,” said O?Leary. “This is a tough loss, but a learning experience for us as a team.”The Prep will take on another tough test in Brockton next Saturday at home.