Lincoln-Sudbury Football Team Heads to 1A Superbowl

The first half belonged to Barnstable, but the second half belonged to Lincoln-Sudbury.

The never-say-die Warriors (11-1) came from behind earlier Tuesday night to stage a 14-13 Division 1A high school football playoff victory over Barnstable (7-5) at Taunton High School in front of about 1,000 fans. In doing so the Warriors garnered a vaunted spot in the MIAA Super Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 3, to face Everett. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. at Bentley University.

The game was won in the fourth quarter on the back of a gutsy performance by senior captain and quarterback Matt Cahill, who threw an unlikely but brilliant cross-field touchdown pass with his team on the 7-yard line and just 8:58 left in the game. The completed touchdown pass was made equally possible by its receiver, Jack Harris, who, under heavy coverage, brought the ball in, eluded one tackle and scored to narrow the margin to 13-6. Will Twyman's PAT kick made it 13-7.

It was the Cahill-to-Harris connection again with just 2:19 left in the game, this time a 13-yard pass that tied it at 13-13 and it was Twyman's ensuing, successful PAT kick that counted as the game-winner. Cahill went 17 for 29 in the air for 180 yards and two touchdown passes, but it was his three first-half interceptions that had Barnstable envisioning its first Super Bowl visit since 1999.

Perhaps the Red Raiders envisioned that possibility too soon, but it was in the first half that the Red Raiders clearly dominated.

Senior tri-captain D.J. Crook, who ran in the game's first tally (23 yards at 2:39 in the first quarter), went 11 for 15 passing in the first half and threw one touchdown pass (to junior James Burke). All totaled, Crook went 16 for 24 in the game for 169 yards, one rushing touchdown and one thrown, and two interceptions. He also ran the ball the most times for BHS, carrying the ball 13 times for 45 yards.

Even though his first pass of the game was picked off by the Warriors' Twyman (who had two interceptions on the night), Crook settled and paced the quick-moving, no-huddle offense to a halftime lead of 13-0. But much credit belongs to a reinvigorated Red Raider defensive unit that in the first half picked three interceptions (Derek Estes, Kevin Hardy and Terrence Mudie) and for all intents and purposes did not appear to look like it would relent.

But relent it did as Lincoln-Sudbury wore down the Raider defense by chewing up almost all of the third quarter clock and much of the fourth. Barnstable ran just three offensive plays in the third quarter alone, compared to the Warriors' 19 plays.

"This is something you will remember for the rest of your lives," Lincoln-Sudbury coach Tom Lopez said after the victory. "Twenty years from now, you'll tell your kids about this."

Lopez was generally low key after the impressive comeback win, but made sure to insist of his players that they "behave tonight" and "be in school tomorrow."

"You did a great job today," he said.

Chris Giorgio, Greg Roder and Tim Krumsiek performed exceptionally well on defense for the Warriors, as did Twyman.

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