FOXBOROUGH — The Swampscott Big Blue came to play on Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium, taking home the Division 5 championship thanks to some stellar play from its defense.
Defensive coordinator Peter Bush had no choice but to be happy as the Big Blue kept the Hornets scoreless for the entire first half. The defense faced some tests, with turnovers giving North Reading great field position in the red zone, but the Hornets were never able to crack the code that was Swampscott’s defense.
“I think that’s their mentality (to bend but not break),” Bush said. “A couple times in the first half, they (North Reading) had the ball down in the red zone. But this group, as they get their backs up against the wall they fight and they stick with the game plan. I think they do a good job anticipating plays that might be coming and that’s where we’ve been all season.”
That was the theme for the entire night. Swampscott didn’t allow a single point until the final two minutes of play, which made life much easier for the offense.
While Swampscott wasn’t immune from allowing big plays, particularly in the air, the defense didn’t hang its head. The Big Blue rebounded and ensured that North Reading stayed out of the end zone.
The Big Blue defense seems to show up in Super Bowls. Since their last appearance in 2019, Swampscott has shut out its opponents for eight straight quarters. Going back to its last 12 quarters of Super Bowl play, Swampscott has only allowed 13 points.
As the usually high-powered Swampscott offense took a while to get into the game, the bend-but-don’t-break defense ensured that the game didn’t get out of hand. Eventually, quarterback senior Cam O’Brien and running back Xaviah Bascon found their rhythm and the Big Blue was able to find the end zone.
Swampscott had great performances from all over the field, as senior Dylan Dubiel and sophomore Anthony Nichols racked up tackles at an impressive rate, senior Jake Papazoglou recorded an important sack to stop North Reading in its tracks, and junior Jason Codispoti snagged two interceptions. The junior’s hands also helped on offense as he tallied over 50 yards receiving.
The Big Blue defense held North Reading to only 86 total yards in the first half. Peter Bush’s group was also strong on third down as Swampscott stopped the Hornets on this play more than 80 percent of the time in the first half. Even after three quarters, the Big Blue only allowed 138 total yards.
It might be cliché, but defense really does win championships, and the Big Blue proved that once again taking home the trophy at the end of its season for a second straight time.
