Haverhill downs Westford
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Friday, September, 23
By Hector Longo
HAVERHILL – Late downpours rendered both offenses one-dimensional as the forward pass was basically useless in the second half.
Of course, Haverhill High’s running game is as multi-faceted as any and the Hillies capitalized on their explosiveness with a pair of long second-half TD runs to douse the Grey Ghosts of Westford Academy, 20-9.
“We have a lot of cats out here,” said Hillie QB Broghean McGovern of the myriad weapons at his disposal. “We really have something special.”
Jake Dion scooted left for 52 yards, and following a Ghost fumble on the ensuing kick, Pedro Santiago rocketed 39 yards around the right end, turning a 9-6 deficit into a 20-9 lead in a matter of just 33 seconds, early in the third.
With the win, Haverhill moves to 2-1 and is sure to spike again in the state polls as Westford was a respected foe around Eastern Mass.
“It was on the linemen (when the rain came). We went in to half time and told them it was all on them,” said McGovern. “They pushed the pile and we got it going. They’re a wild group. They love getting dirty in there.”
Aaron Brooks took a McGovern swing pass and accelerated past the defense in a 50-yard dash to paydirt. The 6-3 advantage was one the Hillies would take to halftime where the skies unleashed their fury.
The Hillies defense seemed quite at home on the wet turf, holding Westford in check over the final 21:14.
Josh Gendron had a big night with a pair of sacks to lead the way up front.
McGovern oozed the confidence of a four-year varsity starter. A cool customer, he took a wobbly punt snap inside his end zone on 4th-and-3 from the 10 and raced for the left sideline. His on-the-go fake punt call netted a gain of 25 and pulled the Hillies out of deep trouble in the fourth.
“It was a loose snap, the ball was wet,” said McGovern. “I saw the corner, and I just bobbled it. There’s no looking back after you start running the ball on that. I just had to get that first down, I wouldn’t call it making a play by myself. It was just a broken play turned good.”
Haverhill 20, Westford Academy 9
Westford Academy: 3 0 6 0 — 9
Haverhill (2-1): 6 0 14 0 — 20
First Quarter
W — Eric Jacobsen 30 field goal, 2:50
H — Aaron Brooks 50 pass from Broghean McGovern (kick wide) :08.9
Third Quarter
W — Alex Antes 3 run (kick wide) 10:14
H — Jake Dion 52 run (kick good) 9:37
H — Pedro Santiago 39 run (kick good) 9:04
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: HAVERHILL (30-247) — J.C. LaGuerre 15-82, Pedro Santiago 4-54; Teshaun Watson 1-0, Broghean McGovern 7-54, Jacob Dion 3-56
PASSING: HAVERHILL — Broghean McGovern 5-8-0, 68
RECEIVING: HAVERHILL — Jason Tufts 1-9, Aaron Brooks 1-50, Jukka Morales 2-5, LaGuerre 1-4
Game Statistics:
First Quarter
W — Eric Jacobsen 30 field goal, 2:50
H — Aaron Brooks 50 pass from Broghean McGovern (kick wide) :08.9
Third Quarter
W — Alex Antes 3 run (kick wide) 10:14
H — Jake Dion 52 run (kick good) 9:37
H — Pedro Santiago 39 run (kick good) 9:04
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: HAVERHILL (30-247) — J.C. LaGuerre 15-82, Pedro Santiago 4-54; Teshaun Watson 1-0, Broghean McGovern 7-54, Jacob Dion 3-56
PASSING: HAVERHILL — Broghean McGovern 5-8-0, 68
RECEIVING: HAVERHILL — Jason Tufts 1-9, Aaron Brooks 1-50, Jukka Morales 2-5, LaGuerre 1-4
