PEABODY — The Bishop Fenwick football team is on to the Division 6 state championship.
No. 3 Fenwick knocked defending Division 6 champion No. 4 Stoneham, 25-20, Friday night at Steven E. Donaldson Stadium.
Fenwick’s defense struggled out of the gate against the Spartans’ run game and trailed, 14-13, at half. But the Crusaders ended on a high note, forcing three straight punts and a turnover on downs to end the game.
“(Stoneham) changed a couple of their blocking schemes on some of their base plays,” Fenwick coach Dave Woods said. “Once our guys got used to some of their changes they made, they just played better in the second half.
“Our guys dug deep because that’s a tough football team. They’re champions and champions die hard. That was a tough offensive team to stop.”
The Crusaders got off to a fast start when Chrys Wilson (9-of-14, 218 yards, touchdowns, two interceptions) connected with Angel Martinez on a 46-yard touchdown to put Fenwick ahead, 7-0 (David Cifuentes PAT).
But an interception on Fenwick’s next drive swung momentum Stoneham’s way and the Spartans added back-to-back scores on their next two drives.
Quarterback Victor Fernandez ran in a touchdown from nine yards out and added a 2-point conversion to give Stoneham an 8-7 lead. Deshawn Chase looked as if he was taking a sweep later in the second quarter, but dropped back to pass and threw a 20-yard touchdown to Chris Dragone to stretch the lead to 14-7.
Stefano Fabiano gave Fenwick a much-needed spark on its next drive. Fabiano hauled in four passes for 75 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown, but a failed 2-point run kept Fenwick behind, 14-13 at the half.
Chase started the second half with a 50-yard touchdown run to put the Spartans ahead, 20-13.
Fenwick answered when Wilson found Jordan Maurice on a 61-yard touchdown, but another failed 2-point try had Fenwick trailing, 20-19.
That’s when the Crusaders’ defense took over, allowing just one more first down the rest of the way.
Woods reached deep into the playbook on Fenwick’s next drive. Things started with a hook-and-ladder play. Wilson hit Jason Romans for a 10-yard pass and Romans pitched the ball to Cifuentes, who ran 29 yards to put Fenwick in striking distance.
A few plays later, Wilson hit Romans to his left on a double pass and Romans threw to a wide open Martinez for a 20-yard touchdown to put Fenwick ahead, 25-20.
Fenwick’s defense did the rest, including forcing a turnover on downs in the final minutes to seal the win.
“The more you play against (Stoneham’s) offense, the more you see it, the more you understand what they’re trying to do,” Woods said. “I have to give credit to these kids; they played hard in the second half. They swarmed to the ball and got after it.”
As Division 6 North champions, the Crusaders have a bye in the state semifinal. Fenwick will take on the winner of a state semifinal between the South and Central champions for the Division 6 crown at Gillette Stadium (TBA).
Daniel Kane can be reached at [email protected].
