LYNN— When sports rivals battle, records and prior results are thrown out the window. Whatever happened in the past leading up to the rivalry game doesn’t mean anything.
That was the mentality the Bishop Fenwick football team carried into Manning Field on Wednesday night when it clashed against Thanksgiving rival St. Mary’s.
The Spartans, 10-1 coming into the game, were heavily favored over the 4-6 Crusaders, but that didn’t stop Fenwick from pushing St. Mary’s to the brink. St. Mary’s won, 28-21, but Fenwick made it far from easy.
Fenwick led 21-20 in the final minute of the game, when Spartans senior quarterback Calvin Johnson scrambled his way into the end zone with the game-winning touchdown.
“It was a whole team win,” St. Mary’s coach Matt Durgin said. “It was the whole senior class leading us tonight with their character, more than anything. They kept fighting back, and give Fenwick credit. They were prepared and they deserve a ton of credit.”
James Brumfield, who tallied 210 rushing yards on 19 carries, scored three touchdowns for St. Mary’s. Fenwick quarterback Chrys Wilson, a freshman, scored three rushing touchdowns for the Crusaders.
“Anytime Fenwick and St. Mary’s play in any sport, nobody cares about records,” Fenwick coach Dave Woods said. “There’s nothing like Fenwick-St. Mary’s Thanksgiving football. It was an awesome game and a great atmosphere. Both teams played their hearts out and it was fun.”
St. Mary’s, known for scoring quickly and jumping out to early leads, stuck with that theme Wednesday night. On the second play of the game, Brumfield gave the Spartans a 6-0 lead with a 16-yard touchdown run. Nino Echevarria added the 2-point conversion to bump the edge to 8-0.
Fenwick fired back when Wilson scored on a 1-yard keeper. Wilson then found David Cifuentes on a screen pass for the 2-point conversion to tie the game at 8-8.
“We started a freshman quarterback, a sophomore tailback and our offensive line played a fantastic game and did a great job,” Woods said. “It was a lot of fun and it was fun to watch.”
Brumfield’s number was called again in the second quarter. This time the senior running back dashed to a 14-8 Spartans lead after a 66-yard carry with 7:02 remaining.
Fenwick stopped the Spartans on the conversion attempt and capitalized on the ensuing drive. Another time-consuming possession put the Crusaders in St. Mary’s territory. Wilson capped the drive with his second touchdown of the night on a 3-yard keeper. Cifuentes added the PAT kick and the Crusaders held their first lead of the game, 15-14, at halftime.
Fenwick started the third quarter with an 8-minute drive to St. Mary’s 11-yard line. The Spartans’ defense buckled down for a key stop on fourth down, and that’s where the possession stalled.
On the ensuing drive, St. Mary’s took the ball 89 yards for the touchdown when Brumfield scored, for the third time, on a 1-yard run. The conversion failed but St. Mary’s led 20-15 with 6:21 to play in the contest.
“James was outstanding tonight,” Durgin said. “In warmups I saw him move and he wanted the ball. I could tell he was hungry.”
Four minutes later, Wilson earned his hat trick with a 1-yard keeper to reclaim the lead for Fenwick at 21-20. That set the stage for Johnson’s late heroics, which gave the Spartans a 28-21 advantage after Brumfield added the conversion on a rush.
Fenwick took the ball with under a minute to play but a Crusader miracle wasn’t meant to be as St. Mary’s claimed its 11th win of the season.
“We were running on fumes,” Durgin added. “But these kids found a way. Patrick Henry played with a bruise the size of a softball on his ankle but he gutted it out. When it’s all said and done, our whole team won. It was a team win.”
Despite the loss, Woods was proud of his team for an impressive effort.
“I’ve been around a long time,” Woods said. “We’ve won a lot of games but I don’t think I’ve ever been more proud of a team than tonight.”
