SANDWICH – Just one week after falling to Abington by a point, Sandwich utilized a potent rushing attack to earn a key 30-8 South Shore League victory over East Bridgewater.
The Vikings entered the matchup with an undefeated record while Sandwich was 4-1. The game could have major implications on who wins the South Shore League Sullivan Division title, and Blue Knights head coach Bob Lomp said his team battled hard and approached the matchup understanding that a win was crucial.
“It’s a big win,” Lomp said. “It was a tough week emotionally coming off of that Abington loss and I challenged the kids that ‘if we’re going to contend in this league, this is a must win.’ ”
The Blue Knights started with the ball and immediately began operating in a potent rushing attack. This resulted in a quick first down rush by Tucker Carline before quarterback Adam Ferreira broke loose for a 49-yard rushing touchdown.
The Vikings would then be forced into a three-and-out, with a sack from Nolan Cochrane serving as the defining blow. The Blue Knights would begin the next drive on the Vikings 30-yard-line and would promptly drive into the red zone.
“We run a tough physical offense that not a lot of teams use,” Lomp said. “That carries over to both sides of the ball. We have a power offense and an attack defense, and you need tough kids for that.”
After some short rushes and a few penalties, Sandwich faced a third and nine from the 11. That’s when the team utilized some trickery, and a hand off to Owen McElroy turned into a passing play that saw the senior tailback connect with Carline on a touchdown.
“We practiced that all week,” McElroy said. “We were going to run it last week against Abington but we ended up coming short. This week, we were at the goal line and coach decided to go for it and we made it happen.”
Sandwich would quickly force another Vikings punt and would drive to the 12-yard line. However, East Bridgewater showed some life and forced a fourth down. Sandwich elected to kick a field goal and Beckett Laurie knocked it through to give the Blue Knights a 17-0 halftime lead.
The teams would trade possessions for the majority of the third quarter before East Bridgewater’s passing attack finally got hot. This culminated in a 23-yard touchdown connection between Ethan Pohl and Aidan Clancy to make it 17-8.
The Blue Knights would drive down the field and a Ferreira one-yard touchdown made it 24-8. However, East Bridgewater drove down once again and nearly converted a fourth-down touchdown.
Instead, Sandwich took over and had a chance to seal the win. However, the Vikings forced a third-and-nine and looked like they would get the ball back. Then Ferreira connected with Luke Steele for a 76-yard touchdown strike.
“They are expecting a run, the last thing they are expecting is a seam route,” Ferreira said. “Owen (McElroy) called the play and it worked out.”
This led to the final and Ferreira said that the team’s offensive approach makes them a formidable foe.
“The scheme is what wins it,” Ferreira said. “We can run power, we can run a sweep, we can go through the middle and then we can throw it over their heads with a vertical pass. It’s really hard to defend because it all looks the same.”
