NORTH ADAMS — Visiting Mahar ran into a physical and formidable McCann Tech defense Friday night. And the Senators ran into it again and again.
The host Hornets scored on their first offensive play of the night, and proceeded to bottle up Mahar the rest of the evening in an 8-0 win out in the Berkshires.
The Senators took the ball first, but as was the case throughout their road trip, found little room to run.
Two rushes netted 3 yards, before an incompletion and false start forced a fourth-and-12 punt from the visiting 10-yard line. A solid return by McCann Tech’s Marquese Moody set up the Hornets on the Mahar 21.
A net of 11 yards on the punt was indicative of the field position battle that followed.
The Hornets put the ball in the hands of junior tailback Anthony Trczinski, and he found a sizable hole up the middle of the Mahar defense. Untouched to the 5-yard line, Trczinski’s momentum finished through a tackle attempt, falling into the end zone with 9:53 still remaining on the first-quarter clock.
Quarterback Landyn Phillips kept the 2-point conversion himself and the Senators were behind the 8-ball 8-0.
No matter how many times coach Kyle Newton shook it, though, the answer remained the same.
Another three-and-out followed, again hampered by a false start on fourth-and-3. A holding call on first down of their next possession exacerbated the problems. Mahar was flagged eight times for 60 yards, a few times in key situations.
A holding call nullified one big gain, and a block in the back waived off a huge punt return late in the fourth quarter. On a fourth-and-4 hard count by the Hornets in the second quarter, Mahar jumped.
Ultimately, the Senators collected only 87 yards of offense. Senior running back Carter Hardy hit the Hornet line over and over again, carrying 15 times for 36 yards. A fourth-quarter fumble put Mahar into dire straights.
Quarterback Freeland Ringer finished 2 of 7 for 20 yards and two interceptions, running four times for 15 yards. The second pick came backed up inside his own 10-yard line with 1:11 left in the game. Heyrlackmung Calypso had a 15-yard catch.
Defensively, the Senators held up well. They forced and recovered a fumble with 7:01 left in the fourth quarter — although the ball was later fumbled back to McCann. There was also a goal-line stand to end the first half. The Hornets drove to the Mahar 5, before a swarm of Senators snuffed out a screen pass for a 5-yard loss. On fourth-and-goal from the 2 with six seconds left, Mahar forced an incompletion and knelt out the half.
“We knew this team was going to be tough. They beat us the past two years, since I’ve been here. Our guys wanted it,” said McCann coach Jon Rochelo. “Started good offensively, but then [Newton] figured me out. He figured out what we were trying to do.”
The Senators (0-2) are back home next Friday night to host Quaboag.
