Andrew Guindon
NEFJ Staff
ASSABET VALLEY – North Attleborough quarterback Chase Frisoli had a career day, rushing for 311 yards and four touchdowns—with one passing touchdown—as the No. 4 Rocketeers defeated No. 1 Reading 42-20 in the D3 MIAA state semifinals on Friday night.
Frisoli attributed his success to his offensive line that controlled the line of scrimmage throughout the entirety of the night.
“I got all of the stats, but the lineman really opened up holes every single play,” said Frisoli. “Our linemen were mauling [Reading’s] guys on the line. We knew that they could handle them up front.”
North Attleborough sprung out to an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter. Frisoli and the Rocketeer offense gained serious momentum on the ground. North Attleborough head coach Michael Strachan noted that coming into the game, the Rocketeer offense was relying on the offensive line to get the run game going.
“All year long we’ve been relying on our offensive line, and they came to play. Then, you put the ball in Chase [Frisoli]’s hand; he’s an athlete. He makes plays, and he’s smart. Tonight he did an unbelievable job for us.”
Frisoli ran for just over 100 yards in the opening quarter, scoring two rushing touchdowns in the process.
The Reading offense was finally able to respond to North Attleborough’s first quarter scoring barrage early in the second quarter.
Jack Murphy rolled out left after facing pressure and found wide receiver Brady Comenos wide open in a break in the Rocketeer coverage. Comenos took the ball 57-yards to the end zone to cut into the Rocketeer lead 14-6. The extra point attempt was no good.
However, North Attleborough showed no sign of slowing down offensively. Continuing to utilize the run offense, running back Matthew Whalen penetrated into the red zone, allowing for an easy rushing score for Francis Strachan at the two-yard line. Austin Clemente’s extra point attempt was successful to make it a 21-6 score game.
The Reading offense tried to respond at the end of the quarter, but North Attleborough defensive lineman Hayden Mottinger broke into the backfield and strip-sacked Murphy. Linebacker Drew Mingo recovered the fumble.
The turnover led to the Rocketeer’s first passing touchdown of the night. The North Attleborough offense tricked the Reading defense, running play-action with running back Brady Paradis leaking out of the backfield and being left wide open in the end zone for the 23-yard score.
In the third quarter, Reading was able to chip into North Attleborough’s lead with two touchdowns.
With 8:39 to go, Murphy found himself surrounded by four Rocketeers, but found a way to escape and run for a 25-yard rushing score (the two-point attempt was no good). Later on, Murphy found Dominic Pate on a crosser that the running back took to the end zone. The two-point attempt following the score was successful.
Strachan’s goal on defense was to contain Murphy in the backfield: “We just wanted to cage him. He’s going to make his plays, and at the end of the day, I think our defensive line did an unbelievable job containing him,” he said. “He’s very talented and a great athlete.”
Luckily for the Rocketeers, Frisoli found the end zone yet again on a QB keeper to make the score 35-20. With 8:02 to go in the fourth quarter, Frisoli scored his fourth and final rushing touchdown of the night, going 31 yards to the end zone untouched on a scramble.
Reading tried to answer back, but a fumbled handoff to the running back that ended up in the hands of North Attleborough’s Patrick Hamilton allowed the Rocketeers to run the clock out.
North Attleborough will move on to the MIAA D3 championship game to face No. Mansfield at Gillette Stadium.
“I’m excited,” said Frisoli. “I grew up with a lot of those kids… It’s going to be fun. We know everything about each other. It’s definitely going to be a test, but I’m excited for it.”
Strachan knew his team would see Mansfield late in the playoffs.
“It’s going to be great,” he added. “I had a feeling this matchup could have been the case… [Mansfield] is a great football team, and it’s going to be a battle.”
