LANGDON- After trailing 6-0 at the half, the Wildcats’ came back to tie the game and take the lead, only to see their chances slip away with only a few seconds left on the clock in the fourth. The Wildcats fell 20-12.
Winnisquam, behind a bruising running game that led them down the field, pounded their way to a 6-0 lead that held up heading into the second half.
FM clawed their way back to tie the game on a pass from Jacob Shoemaker to Aaron Blair on a 29-yard play.
Turnovers played a huge role on Friday, as both teams combined for 9, with a big one ending up in the arms of the Wildcats’ Tyler Swain as the Bears were marching down the field. As the momentum had swung in favor of FM, Shoemaker hit Alex Blair in the corner of the end-zone for their second connection to give the Wildcats a 12-6 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Winnisquam would answer back with 4 minutes left as Angelo Glover and his massive frame busted18 yards to tie the game 12-12.
On their next drive, FM fumbled the ball away. But, fortunately they got it back as Swain picked off a Bears’ pass with only 29 seconds left. FM couldn’t move the ball and was forced to punt. The snap on the punt attempt found the ground and all of a sudden Winnisquam had the ball at the 2 yard line with 10 seconds remaining, with a chance to win. The first attempted pass fell harmlessly with 5 seconds in the game, but Winnisquam scored a TD on a pass the next play and added the 2 point conversion for the 20-12 final score.
“I am so proud of the way this team never quit and came back against a very good Winnisquam team,” said FM head coach Orion Binney after the game. “We played our hearts out tonight and I know we are on the verge of being a very good team.”
FM will host Franklin next Friday night.
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