Quakers eliminate Johnston in D-II semis

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After last week’s stunning upset victory over No. 1 St. Raphael, the Johnston football team was looking to do the same to the No. 2 Moses Brown Quakers last Friday night at Brown University’s Berylson Field.

The No. 4 Panthers held leads of 7-0 and 14-7 in the first half, but the Quaker offense went on to score 34 unanswered points, while their defense shutout the Panthers in the second half en route to a 41-14 victory that earned them a spot in the Division II Super Bowl against Shea on Dec. 6.

“They are a good team, they beat us twice and you have to give them credit,” said Johnston head coach Joe Acciardo. “We got unruly in the second half and that was our recipe for disaster at the beginning of the year. We paid a severe price. We played with a lot of heart tonight, but you have to have discipline.”

Johnston and Moses Brown have clashed in the playoffs in the past, in 2007, when the Quakers eliminated the Panthers 21-0 in the Division III semifinals. The two teams battled it out again in 2009, with the Panthers prevailing in overtime 19-16 on Greg Doutre’s field goal, which earned them a Super Bowl berth.

Earlier this season, the Quakers beat the Panthers 48-20 behind running back Andrew Howard’s 121 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Friday night, Howard once again could not be contained, as he rushed for 163 yards and three touchdowns.

It was a promising start for the Panthers after the Quakers, who were the Division III Super Bowl runners-up last season, fumbled a JHS punt. Curtis Mathieu recovered the ball at the Moses Brown 28-yard line, and later in the drive he would later score from the 1-yard line, the first of his two touchdowns on the night.

Johnston possessed the ball on offense for over six minutes in the opening quarter highlighted by a Mike Caparco pass to Aaron Perfetto pass play and a Caparco scramble for a first down.

Moses Brown answered back three minutes later when their 6-foot, 4-inch signal caller Adam Romano connected with Tommy Chase from 29 yards out for the tying score. For the second week in a row, the Panthers’ Dominic Sullivan strip-sacked the quarterback, setting up the JHS offense at midfield. Dan Goldberger recovered the loose ball for the Panthers.

Last week’s player of the game, Marc Conte, ran for a first down, as did Caparco. Mathieu finished off the drive at the 6:32 mark of the second quarter with a 9-yard touchdown burst up the middle, giving JHS a 14-7 lead. With 2:35 left in the first half, Moses Brown tied the game at 14 with a Howard 1-yard touchdown run that gave them some momentum going into halftime.

It only took the Quakers 1:45 of the third quarter to take their first lead of the game on a Howard 9-yard touchdown rush. Jake Lambert increased the home team’s lead on a 13-yard touchdown run. The extra point was blocked by Mathieu, keeping the score 27-14.

The Quaker defense took over in the second half, shutting down Johnston’s offense by forcing three Panther turnovers and two punts. Howard, who rushed for over 1,300 yards this season with 20 touchdowns, gave his team a comfortable 34-14 advantage with a 43-yard touchdown dash and Chris Argus returned an interception 35 yards for a score to ensure the Quakers of their second straight Super Bowl appearance.

“At halftime, Moses Brown woke up,” Acciardo said. “They stepped it up in the second half and I give them credit. That’s what good teams do.”

The Panthers should have no regrets about their 2014 season. They got off to an 0-2 start but rallied to qualify for the postseason with a 3-4 league record. They benefited from Tolman’s ban from the RIIL playoffs and surprised an undefeated St. Raphael team in the D-II quarterfinals.

“It’s a lot about making memories and I’m proud of these guys,” Acciardo said. “Our guys gave it their all this year, came to practice everyday and did the right things. I’ll always remember them, we are all very close. It was a long journey and we will always be here for them.”

Moses Brown only loss this year was at the hands of North Kingston, 35-10 last month.

On another note, Panther assistant coach Bruce Mastracchio was recently inducted into the Providence Gridiron Hall of Fame. He has been coaching high school football for over 45 years, the past three with Johnston.

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