By Tyler Amaral
NEFJ Staff
MANSFIELD – Third-seeded Mashpee was on the verge of blowing a 21-point second half lead in a Division 7 state semifinal against second-seeded Clinton on Saturday.
The Falcon defense had given up 15 unanswered points and Clinton had the ball at the five-yard line with under a minute left in the game.
On second down, the Falcons stuffed a run play. Clinton spiked the ball on third down, setting up an all-or-nothing fourth down play. Multiple Mashpee defenders got into the backfield and Clinton quarterback Colin Schmidt lost his footing, preserving the 28-22 win for the Falcons.
Mashpee (9-2) is heading to Gillette Stadium for the first time in seven years and will play reigning champion Uxbridge.
“It’s a hell of a win” said Mashpee head coach Matt Triveri. “We survived. I think that’s the way to put it.”
The Mashpee passing attack was clicking early. After Ryan Triveri recovered a Clinton fumble, the Falcon offense went to work.
On third and long, quarterback Dominic Matteodo let a ball rip down the middle of the field. Triveri reeled in the pass, made a couple Clinton defenders miss in space and scored the game’s first touchdown from 34 yards out.
“I’ve known Ryan since sixth grade” said Matteodo. “And I’ve been throwing to him since eighth grade. All summer we worked together. We’ve built a really good connection on and off the field.”
Clinton (8-3) responded quickly. Two minutes after the Mashpee touchdown, the Gaels answered with a touchdown pass of their own, a 28-yard strike from Schmidt to Grady Frisch. The extra point gave Clinton its only lead of the game.
Mashpee regained the lead 90 seconds later. Matteodo and Triveri connected again, this time from 64 yards out. The two-point connection between the two made it 14-7 Falcons.
The Falcons rotated running backs throughout the game. Seniors Ben Squarcia and Logan Wills complimented each other well and both played big roles in the victory.
With 33 seconds left in the first half, Wills added a four-yard score to extend the Falcons lead to 20-7.
Coming out of halftime, Mashpee got the ball and took up over seven minutes of clock on its final touchdown drive. Wills capped the drive off with a five-yard plunge to make the score 28-7.
The drive was extended on a fourth down conversion from Matteodo to Vincent Pinnetti. Clinton covered the play perfectly but Pinnetti was able to wrestle the ball away from the Gael defender.
Trailing 28-7, Clinton started to move the ball through the air.
Schmidt connected with Frisch for a 16-yard touchdown. Frisch made a remarkable adjustment in the air to come down with his second score.
After a much-needed stop, the Clinton offense went to work again.
Schmidt threw a 23-yard touchdown strike to Ethan Frisch on fourth down with eight minutes left in the game. A Taetum Cassella two-point conversion cut the deficit to 28-22.
“The [Grisch] brothers are terrific players” said Matt Triveri. “They have athletes and the quarterback did a great job.”
Squarcia picked up 13 yards on third down and 11 on the next Mashpee possession to chew more clock. That first down proved to be crucial in the end as Clinton wasted a down with a spike as the clock was winding.
“I can’t be any happier for these guys” said Matt Triveri. “They’re just phenomenal kids. It’s a testament to who they are. And the coaches got them ready all week.”