By Nick Pantages
@nick_pantages22
Jacob Silvester pulled the ball on an option play, powering the ball for four yards and bringing up a crucial third and 3 for the Pride. The Pride led 23-8 in the final two minutes of the third quarter, looking to put some points on the board and make it a three-score game.
However on the play, Silvester’s helmet popped off, forcing him to come out on the ensuing play.
Sophomore backup quarterback Drew Heenan entered in his place, and everyone in attendance thought the Pride would rely on their dynamic fullback Arsen Shtefan to pick up this first down and run some more clock.
But head coach Mike Cerasuolo and company dialed up a shot play, with Heenan play faking and hitting halfback Blane Hart up the seam for 42 yards, demoralizing the Union defense.
“They just always think we are going to run the ball,” Cerasuolo said. “We had talked about it at halftime, what they were giving us, so we took advantage of it.”
This was not the first time Heenan had thrown a pass, as he threw a 24-yard touchdown in the game prior at Husson last Saturday, giving Cerasuolo some extra confidence to dial that call up.
“It just showed his preparation, that’s a tough moment to get in there but he rose to it,” Cerasuolo said.
Shtefan punched it in from 10 yards out on the next Springfield play from scrimmage, extending the Pride’s lead to 30-8 right before the start of the fourth quarter, putting the game out of reach. After a couple late scores by both teams, the Pride prevailed 37-20, pushing their record to 3-0 on the season.
It was their first win against Union in their last five contests, and Cerasuolo’s first win against the Garnet Chargers since his inaugural season as head coach in 2016.
“Felt pretty good,” Cerasuolo said. “I was just happy for the kids, it means a lot to them. These kids that came back for their fifth year and sixth year, this was one of the things they wanted to accomplish.”
The Pride took an early lead, where after forcing a Union punt, Dante Vazquez broke a 49 yard touchdown on a play to the perimeter of the field, running through the first tackle before racing to the endzone to put Springfield up early.
Ian Wernik’s point after try was unsuccessful, and the Pride held an early 6-0 lead.
After exchanging punts, Union took advantage of a short field and capped off their drive with quarterback Patch Flanagan punching in a score from one yard out.
After scoring, the Garnet Chargers ran a variation of the swinging gate play, lining up some lineman like receivers instead of kicking an extra point, where AJ Condemi ran the ball in to make it 8-6 Union.
The Pride regained possession on their own 10 yard line after a penalty on the kick return. Following two plays to give themselves some breathing room, Joe Cannizzaro broke through on a dive play, rumbling for a 63-yard carry on the final play of the first quarter.
From there, Vazquez punched in his second touchdown of the game, another highlight score. He lowered his shoulder and ran through the Union cornerback to punch in the endzone, giving the Pride the lead — one they did not lose for the rest of the contest.
“The last two games we were really fullback oriented,” Vazquez said. “So getting the ball on the perimeter and making plays like that, laying a devastating hit and scoring, that felt good.”
The Pride forced a stop and Wernik kicked a field goal to make it 16-8.
Union star running back Matthew Fiore fumbled two plays into their next possession, with Springfield inheriting great field position after Tyler Pohlman jumped on the ball.
This was Pohlman’s first game this season, giving the Pride a massive emotional boost to have not only a key player but someone the team rallied around back on the sidelines.
Following the recovery, the Pride marched down the field, with Hart punching in a score from six yards out after Vazquez and left tackle Craig Connell created a massive hole for him to run through.
“Every time I get out there, I have a mindset of ‘I have to block,’” Vazquez said. “Clearing that way for Blane, Arsen and Jacob to score and lay booms on the perimeter, I love it.”
The Pride’s defense held strong in the third quarter, forcing Union scoreless.
The Garnet Chargers scored on their first possession of the fourth quarter, with Flanagan connecting with Robbie Tolbert to cut the lead to 30-14. Fiore was stonewalled on the two point conversion, keeping the lead at 16.
The Pride marched the ball down the field on their next possession, taking up 7 minutes and 35 seconds of game time before Shtefan punched in his second score of the game, extending the lead to 37-14.
The offensive line was crucial on the Pride’s final scoring drive. Coming into the game, they were undersized due to Union’s big front 7, but the offensive line, known as ‘The Roach,’ was able to move bodies for the running backs to keep the clock moving.
“That’s a very prideful unit, with The Roach,” Cerasuolo said. “With as much as we run the football, it’s important for them to set the pace, and they do that every day in practice and it carries into the game.”
Flanagan connected with Tolbert again on a back shoulder throw in the end zone on Union’s next drive, but it took too much time off the clock.
The Pride recovered the onside kick and kneeled out the clock to move to 3-0 on the season, their first time doing that since 2017, when they went undefeated in the regular season.
They will look to make it 4-0 next time out at Coast Guard, their first game of NEWMAC play.
Photo courtesy of Springfield Athletics.