While the end result of Friday night’s game between the Walpole and Dedham High football teams might have been a foregone conclusion, that didn’t mean there wasn’t an awful lot at stake for both of these programs.
Walpole, which cruised to a 47-0 win over the depleted Marauders to remain undefeated at 9-0, finally showed signs of emerging from an injury blight that cut into its ranks earlier in the year. And from the Marauder sideline, there was a pair of goals the team hoped to accomplish against the Rebels, according to coach Dave Flynn.
"One of the goals we talked about at halftime was that we didn’t want them to get to fifty points," said Flynn, whose team fell to 1-8 with the loss. "We achieved that, but we also wanted to break the shutout."
Flynn has ample company in that respect. The Rebels have not been scored upon since Milton kicked a field goal in Week 4. Since, the team has blanked Norwood, Wellesley, Needham, Newton North and Dedham to the tune of 218-0.
The Marauders nearly realized their second objective in the final two minutes when Jay Maxwell, who had been held to 14 yards on 16 carries, finally broke a pair of runs for 48 and 14 yards that put his team in the red zone. But a third down pass from quarterback Mike Kadlick was batted out of the hands of intended receiver P.J. Morse as he strode across the goal line.
A fourth down try was intercepted by defensive back James Smith to end the threat and the game.
"Dedham played hard tonight," said Walpole coach Barry Greener. "They were just outmanned. They need more depth, more numbers. They have a lot of sophomores and when you put seniors against sophomores, like tonight, it can get ugly."
Walpole wasted no time putting points on the board when quarterback Will Bolster, who was 7-of-13 for 124 yards, found Andrew Papirio for a 54-yard touchdown just 1:02 into the contest.
The Rebels added rushing TDs of 22 and 10 yards from Connor Moriarty and Cam Hanley, respectively, before time ran out on the first quarter. Dedham, meanwhile, was unable to advance the ball beyond its own 30 in its three possessions.
"That’s probably one of the most physical football teams in the league," said Flynn of Walpole. "And they’re fast. Defensively, they fly to the football. That’s an excellent team and that’s why they have an unblemished record. But what makes me proud is our kids made them earn everything they got. They scored a lot of points, but we made them earn it."
While the end result of Friday night’s game between the Walpole and Dedham High football teams might have been a foregone conclusion, that didn’t mean there wasn’t an awful lot at stake for both of these programs.
Walpole, which cruised to a 47-0 win over the depleted Marauders to remain undefeated at 9-0, finally showed signs of emerging from an injury blight that cut into its ranks earlier in the year. And from the Marauder sideline, there was a pair of goals the team hoped to accomplish against the Rebels, according to coach Dave Flynn.
"One of the goals we talked about at halftime was that we didn’t want them to get to fifty points," said Flynn, whose team fell to 1-8 with the loss. "We achieved that, but we also wanted to break the shutout."
Flynn has ample company in that respect. The Rebels have not been scored upon since Milton kicked a field goal in Week 4. Since, the team has blanked Norwood, Wellesley, Needham, Newton North and Dedham to the tune of 218-0.
The Marauders nearly realized their second objective in the final two minutes when Jay Maxwell, who had been held to 14 yards on 16 carries, finally broke a pair of runs for 48 and 14 yards that put his team in the red zone. But a third down pass from quarterback Mike Kadlick was batted out of the hands of intended receiver P.J. Morse as he strode across the goal line.
A fourth down try was intercepted by defensive back James Smith to end the threat and the game.
"Dedham played hard tonight," said Walpole coach Barry Greener. "They were just outmanned. They need more depth, more numbers. They have a lot of sophomores and when you put seniors against sophomores, like tonight, it can get ugly."
Walpole wasted no time putting points on the board when quarterback Will Bolster, who was 7-of-13 for 124 yards, found Andrew Papirio for a 54-yard touchdown just 1:02 into the contest.
The Rebels added rushing TDs of 22 and 10 yards from Connor Moriarty and Cam Hanley, respectively, before time ran out on the first quarter. Dedham, meanwhile, was unable to advance the ball beyond its own 30 in its three possessions.
"That’s probably one of the most physical football teams in the league," said Flynn of Walpole. "And they’re fast. Defensively, they fly to the football. That’s an excellent team and that’s why they have an unblemished record. But what makes me proud is our kids made them earn everything they got. They scored a lot of points, but we made them earn it."
Walpole climbed into a 26-0 lead when Moriarty barreled in from the 7 on the first play after Dedham QB Kyle Wynn, subbing for Kadlick, was intercepted by Billy Rockwood. Kadlick returned for the next Marauder series and suffered a similar fate when Rockwood recorded his second pick.
That turnover also led to a Walpole score, making it 33-0 in the second quarter on a 3-yard toss from Bolster to Chris Collins, but not before Marauder defenders dealt several bruising hits, including a Daron Stephen sack of Bolster and Mike Sabatino’s crunching tackle on Hanley for a loss.
In the second half, Walpole reserves added a pair to wrap up the scoring. Quarterback D.J. Villa took it in himself from the 8 with 8:10 left in the third and moments later, Matt Cotter punched in a TD from the 3. The fourth quarter, to Dedham’s defensive credit, was scoreless.
Dedham hosts Milton tomorrow in its final home game of the season.
