ANDOVER— The Rams knew what they were up against heading into their first round matchup against the undefeated Andover Golden Warriors. They did their best to combat Andover’s high-powered offense with clock management, but the Golden Warriors’ vertical attack proved to be too much and Andover cruised past Classical, 42-6, at Andover High School on Friday night in the first round of the MIAA Division 1 playoffs.
Andover kicked off to the Rams to begin the first quarter. A holding penalty on the kickoff backed Classical up to its own 10 yard line. Classical came into the contest looking to dominate time of possession to keep Andover’s offense off the field, and the strategy got off to a decent start on the first drive. Classical ran the ball on its first seven snaps of the game, with the majority of the handoffs going to freshman running back Tyren Hoeun.
After no gain on third down and two, Classical was getting ready to punt before Head Coach Brian Vaughan called timeout. Surprisingly, the offense came back onto the field after the pause in action. The Rams went for it, but the run by Hoeun was stopped short of the marker, giving Andover great starting field position.
The Rams defense held strong, however, and forced Andover to try a field goal inside the 10-yard line. The kick was good, and gave the Golden Warriors an early 3-0 lead.
Hoeun was again given the majority of touches on Classical’s second possession. After back-to-back runs of five and nine yards, the drive seemed to have stalled out. However, on 4th and 5 from the Rams’ 25, Andover received a roughing-the-kicker penalty on a Nick Costa punt and gave the Rams a first down.
Classical failed to pounce on the opportunity and turned the ball over on downs for the second time in as many possessions. The Rams’ defense continued to keep Classical in the contest after forcing another Andover field goal in the second quarter. The score read 6-0.
The floodgates finally opened for Andover midway through the second quarter – despite Classical’s efforts. Quarterback Scotty Brown connected with receiver Michael Capachietti for a 51-yard touchdown to make it a 13-0 ballgame.
Andover quickly got the ball back and struck yet again, this time a 45-yard bomb to receiver Lincoln Beal just before the half. A successful two-point conversion put the Golden Warriors comfortably in front, 21-0, going into the half.
After the game, Vaughan commented on the team’s strategy to win time of possession.
“We wanted to chew the clock. It kind of got away from us right before the half,” he said. “We thought if we could stick around, maybe a two point score going into half, maybe certain things happen in the second half and we’re in it late in the fourth.”
Andover’s explosive offense really made its mark in the third quarter with two one-play drives resulting in rushing touchdowns of 80 and 68 yards. The score showed 35-0 after three.
The Golden Warriors tacked on another touchdown in the fourth to make it 42-0. The Rams showed incredible fight at the end of the fourth, however. With just under two minutes to play, Faessler found receiver John Nasky in the endzone to get the Rams on the board (42-6).
Nasky and Hoeun were the bright spots for Classical on offense. Nasky had over 60 yards receiving and the lone touchdown score, while Hoeun recorded over 50 rushing yards.
Vaughan was proud of the way his team hung in and battled despite the result.
“I don’t think our kids quit, I think they kept battling,” he said.”I’m proud of our guys, I’m proud we got to the playoffs. We played hard, it just shows we just got to take that next step and get better.”
With a young, talented core, Classical will have a chance to improve its 5-2 regular season record next season, and could make some noise beyond that.
But, for now, the Rams aren’t quite done yet. They will play a consolation game next Friday, though their opponent is to be determined as of 9:30 p.m Friday night. After that, a Thanksgiving matchup with perennial rival Lynn English awaits for the Rams, to which Vaughan says the team is amped for.
“In Lynn, that’s the super bowl,” he said. “We’ll be excited for that.”
