Motivated CHS football team routs Sandwich

A motivated and refocused CHS football team regrouped Friday night at home and went right back to its strengths — good blocking, an outstanding running attack and stout run defense — en route to a dominant, 33-7 win over visiting Sandwich (3-5).

Senior captain Woanyen Mahn had 3 TDs. (Mike Barucci photo)

With Canton (6-2) narrowly missing out on the MIAA playoffs, the Bulldogs along with Sandwich were put in the non-qualifying group of Division 4 schools. Canton’s season continues with a home game Friday night against Randolph at 7 p.m. and next Friday night at Medway before wrapping up on Thanksgiving Day at home against rival Stoughton.

In the Sandwich game, Canton led 7-0 at the end of the first quarter, 20-7 at the half, and 33-7 at the end of the third  quarter with the second unit playing most of the fourth.

The Bulldogs ran all over the Blue Knights, averaging four to five yards per attempt and gaining 329 yards as a team, including 166 from Jake Ragusa and 125 from Woanyen Mahn. Sandwich had few answers for Mahn’s speed on the outside and Ragusa’s shifting power and speed inside.

Mahn scored three touchdowns of 1, 13 and 25 yards while Ragusa scored from two yards out after a 50-yard run to set up the score. Mahn also had a 55-yard run to set up Canton’s initial touchdown.

On defense, the Bulldogs’ linemen shut down the Sandwich rushing attack, and the Canton secondary behind Mahn, Nick Gustasfson, Mike McMahon and Ragusa helped stifle the Blue Knights’ passing attack. Gustafson, a senior, had a nice interception to stop a Sandwich drive near the end of the first half.

Three players tied for the team lead in tackles with three each by Bires, Jude Albert, and Kenny Dulcio.

After the game, senior captain Joe Bires said winning out for the rest of the year means a lot to the players. “We were disappointed in not making the playoffs, but winning means a lot to us,” he said. “I hope we win all the games  by 50 points.”

Head coach Dave Bohane praised his seniors and captains for leading the way in last week’s practices. “Everyone is totally committed in finishing the season with as many wins as possible,” he said. “We still have a lot of work to do, working on fundamentals, improving our depth, working on our passing game, and improving our blocking.”

Several teams in the Hockomock League made the MIAA playoffs. Among those who won Friday night and continue on include: Mansfield (D2 South), Stoughton and North Attleboro (D3 Southwest), and Foxboro (D4 South). Blue Hills Regional Technical School of Canton also moves on after a 34-21 win over Nantucket in Division 6.

Hockomock teams who were eliminated in the playoff opener include Attleboro (D1 South), King Philip (D2 South), and Sharon, which snuck into the D3 Southeast bracket despite a losing record and fell to Dartmouth 44-7.

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Posted by Mike Berger on Nov 6 2015. Filed under Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.