BROCKTON — It was a back-and-forth battle all evening long for the St. Mary’s football team, but in the end it was a successful two-point conversion that came between the Spartans and a seven-game winning streak as they fell in double overtime to Catholic Central League foe Cardinal Spellman by a score of 22-20 Friday night.
“It was a bad loss for us after a horrendous week of practice,” said St. Mary’s coach Sean Driscoll. “We went on the road against a team hungry for its first win with a new coach, and they bullied us (Friday). It was a tough game all around for us.”
Senior quarterback Ali Barry led the offensive attack for St. Mary’s, rushing for two touchdowns and throwing for another in the loss. Nick Sacco had a touchdown reception for the Spartans.
As has been the case for much of the season, the Spartans came right out and started driving down the field. However, their opening drive was stymied when Barry threw an interception, and the two teams eventually went into the end of the first quarter still tied at 0-0.
The scoring got going midway through the second quarter, when Barry was able to punch one in from three yards out on a quarterback keeper to make it a 7-0 St. Mary’s lead.
But Spellman answered right back a few minutes later, as Jack Duffy rushed in the first of his three touchdowns on the night to tie things up a 7-7 — where the score remained until halftime.
Barry added another short touchdown run in the third quarter to give the Spartans a 14-7 lead, and St. Mary’s held that lead deep into the fourth quarter.
But, after punting to Spellman with six minutes to play, things turned. The Cardinals made several key plays to keep the drive alive, and then with 2:30 to play Duffy broke free for a 50-yard touchdown run to tie things up at 14-14.
Both teams came up empty on their respective opening drives in overtime, then Barry connected with Sacco on a 27-yard touchdown — thanks to a stellar catch by Sacco — to go up 20-14. But the two-point conversion was no good, opening the door for Spellman to win it.
The Cardinals didn’t waste their chance, as Duffy scored for the third time and then subsequently punched in the two-point conversion to give Spellman the 22-20 upset win.
“Give credit to Spellman, they really took it to us all night and earned that win,” said Driscoll. “But at the same time, our guys need to figure out what’s important to them and get focused up for next week.”
St. Mary’s (6-1), which is currently the No. 1-ranked team in the Division 6 power rankings, hosts Archbishop Williams Friday night (7:30) for its regular-season finale.
“Our goal coming into the season was to win the CCL, and we’re still in a position to do that if we can come away with a win next week,” said Driscoll. “The key for us will be how we respond to this loss and how we come out in practice next week. Williams is a tough team that always plays us hard in Lynn, so we’re going to have to be ready.”
