Bulldogs knocked out of playoff picture with loss to OA

Senior Sterlin Garvin and the Bulldogs will look to finish strong over their final four games. (Mike Barucci photo)

For the second time in three weeks, the CHS football team was stunned at the end of a game, losing the lead and the game in the last seconds.

This time Oliver Ames, down 21-7 after three periods, staged a dramatic comeback and pulled ahead with a two-point conversion. The Tigers held off a surging Canton drive with seconds to go as the OA defensive line blocked a 39-yard field goal attempt by Canton kicker Thomas Monagle that would have won the game for the Bulldogs.

Instead, the Bulldogs lost their third consecutive game and were eliminated from postseason contention. On Sunday the MIAA set the rest of the schedule for Canton, including a home game this Saturday at noon against Randolph, at Medway November 7, and home against Bishop Stang November 14. Canton will then wrap up its season at rival Stoughton in the annual Thanksgiving Day game on Thursday, November 27.

Friday’s loss to OA came on Canton’s senior night and spoiled some truly exceptional individual performances. Senior Derrick Harris finished with 134 receiving yards and two acrobatic touchdown catches, and quarterback Brian Hagan, who played hurt late in the game, totaled 116 rushing yards with two touchdowns and 142 passing yards. Several Canton defenders also had outstanding games, including Wavol Prentice (6 tackles, sack), James Bourikas (7 tackles), and Jake Ragusa, who had two tackles and recovered an onside kick. He also returned an interception for a touchdown; however, the interception was nullified by a penalty.

Head coach Dave Bohane singled out a devastating statistic in the two games Canton has lost in the final moments. In both games — against division leader Stoughton (who beat Foxboro in a title game Friday night) and last week’s game against OA — the Bulldogs have been outscored 33-0 in the second half. “As a head coach and as a staff, we have to figure out what we have to do better in the second half,” he said. “Right now I can’t put my finger on it and I don’t have the answers. It is broken and I have to fix it.”

In the first half Friday night, Canton jumped all over the Tigers, recovering an onside kick at the Tiger 35-yard line and marching eight plays to the end zone, capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by Sterlin Garvin.

The Bulldogs then added another score on a 32-yard touchdown strike from Hagan to Harris with 6:45 remaining in the first quarter. OA recovered with a 48-yard run up the middle by Tiger running back Doug McDonald, but the Bulldogs came back quickly to sore on an 85-yard pass play from Hagan to Harris, who outfought two defenders for the ball and sped away down the sideline to give the Bulldogs a 21-7 lead.

The score remained 21-7 after three quarters, but the momentum soon swung to the Tigers. A long punt return allowed OA to set up at the Canton 12-yard line at the end of the third quarter. Canton lineman Kenny Dulcio sacked Tiger quarterback Charlie Ryan at the Canton 18-yard line, but on the next play McDonald caught a short screen pass and ran 18 yards for a touchdown to make it 21-14 with 10:51 left in the game.

The Canton offense failed to mount a first down and the Tigers began a 13-play drive, which led to a 20-yard pass play to Sam Kelley with 1:57 remaining. Ryan then found McDonald wide open in the end zone for the two-point conversion to give the Tigers the one-point lead.

Refusing to quit, the Bulldogs marched from their own 33-yard line to the OA 21, highlighted by passes from Hagan to Ross and Harris and some nifty running by Hagan. With four seconds left in the game, Monagle lined up for the field goal attempt, but the kick was blocked by several OA linemen.

“I knew that if we controlled our mistakes and got on our game, we could come back and beat Canton in the second half,” said OA head coach Jim Artz. “Our senior leadership, our captains did not lose their composure with the deficit we were facing at 21-7.”

Prior to the game, Canton honored the senior football players and cheerleaders. The senior cheerleaders are Abby Green, Britney Hurley, Bridget Monagle, Liz Smith, Molly Wigandt, Sammy Devane, Victoria Galanis, and captains Devin Kincade and Meghan Peters. Senior football players are Garvin, Harris, Hagan, Bourikas, Prentice, Jahron Reynolds, Yanni Papadopoulos, Rob DiCalogero, Kenny O’Brien, Anthony Ross, Tommy Galvin, Timmy Gutowski, Kevin Wing, Paul Lindor, Matt McHugh, Michael Pastor, Dylan Winchell, and Kyle Chavious. Ross Hagan, Wing, and Winchell are senior co-captains.

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