It came as no surprise to that Lincoln-Sudbury High was capable of putting plenty of points on the board.
After all, , which won the Dual County League Division 1 championship.
But what Aylward and his Redmen weren't prepared for was a smothering defensive effort out of the LSHS defense, which completely shut down Tewksbury High on its way to a 28-0 opening day victory Saturday afternoon at Doucette Field.
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Tewksbury's offense failed to muster even a single first down in the first two periods, while Lincoln-Sudbury systematically built a 14-0 halftime lead. The TMHS offense had six possessions in the first two quarters, and went three-and-out on four of them. The other two ended in turnovers.
Things didn't get much better in the second half, either. Tewksbury managed to squeeze out two first downs, but the Redmen never once possessed the ball in Lincoln-Sudbury territory at any point in the final two quarters. They finished the afternoon with just 33 rushing yards and 26 passing yards adding up to just 59 yards of total offense.
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"They beat us off the ball early, and it seemed like we could never get that back," Aylward said. "We tried to execute some quicker throws but it was a struggle to get anything going on offense. It was very frustrating."
Meanwhile, Lincoln-Sudbury found success in a variety of areas, pounding the ball up the middle, running wide, and striking through the air.
The Warriors offensive totals weren't impressive, but they were effective. Senior running back Christopher Giorgio led Lincoln-Sudbury with 63 yards and two touchdowns, while junior running back Brian Carroll added 31 yards rushing and a touchdown. Quarterback Matthew Cahill completed 10 of 20 passes for 112 yards.
"These are the same kids that they won (the DCL Championship) with last year, so we knew what they were going to do," Aylward said. "But they were tough. They're a year older than they were when they won last year, and they executed well."
On the opposite side of the coin, the Redmen showed no signs of the offensive efficiency they found in their final pre-season scrimmage against Gloucester. Senior quarterback Kevin Saunders, who was under pressure much of the day, completed just three of nine passing attempts for 15 yards, while being intercepted twice. Junior quarterback Zak DiRocco took over in the fourth quarter but fared no better, completing one pass for 11 yards in eight attempts with one interception.
Senior running back Chris Bettano led all Redmen rushers with 28 yards on six carries.
"We had trouble executing almost everything we tried to do on offense," Aylward said. "We've got our work cut out for us."
Tewksbury's few bright spots came on defense, as linebackers Derek Tarpey and Nick Winn made some big hits and defensive back Brad Gahagan came up with an interception.
Things don't get any easier for the Redmen as they open up their Merrimack Valley Conference schedule on the road next Friday night against Lawrence.
"We've got a lot of work to do between now and then," Aylward said. "But for a lot of these guys, this was their first varsity game. I told them this will only be a loss if you don't learn a number of lessons from it and adjust to it."
