SOUTH DEERFIELD — The Firehawks turned up the heat with two stops on fourth down, but the embers cooled before Frontier could complete the comeback on Friday night.
Frontier fell to Berkshire County foe Lee 19-14 in the Intercounty League South opener for both teams in a game that needed all 48 minutes to be decided.
Wyatt Edes and Sean Kirkendall combined for a sack of Lee’s Hayden Siok, resulting in a turnover on downs with just six minutes of action remaining.
Josh Semaski, who finished with 96 rushing yards and a touchdown, and Iain Spearance, who added 40 yards on the ground, had Frontier cooking inside Lee’s 25-yard line facing a third-and-1 situation.
Lee’s Alex DelVecchio and Thomas Somerville came up with tackles behind the line of scrimmage on back-to-back to squash the threat. The Wildcats took over on downs and never relinquished the rock.
“We’ve had a tough first three games where we weren’t really able to do things productively,” said Frontier coach Scott Dredge, whose team fell to 0-4 on the season. “I know we came up short on the fourth down, but when you look at the whole game, there are enough positives where we can say to ourselves that we played a complete football game.”
The Redhawks scored 12 points over the first three games and exceeded that total in Friday’s league match against the Wildcats. It wasn’t a step, but a sprint in the right direction.
Speaking of sprints, Semaski gave Frontier a jolt on the team’s opening possession with a 43-yard touchdown run. Lee’s Elliot Winston scored on the first drive of the game, but Semaski’s run, and successful two-point attempt, gave the Redhawks an early 8-6 lead in the first quarter.
In fact, the Redhawks started both halves with touchdowns as quarterback Sam Schreiber closed a seven-play drive with a one-yard touchdown run to begin the third quarter.
“That was the key,” Dredge said of the quick strikes. “To come out like that, I think it was the shot the team needed to prove to themselves that they can do this.”
Semanski shared the mindset of his coach.
“Before the game, it seemed like everyone’s head may not be in it,” he said, “but once we started hitting, we really got going both offensively and defensively.”
Despite the early two-point advantage, the Wildcats clawed their way to 13 unanswered points, taking a 19-6 lead into the half.
“We worked hard in practice this week to get the stuff we couldn’t do last week straightened out,” Semaski said.
Frontier finished the night with 139 rushing yards on 23 attempts — good for nearly six yards per carry.
“We blocked well,” Semaski said. “Our guys had guts and were ready to hit. Our offensive line had a day and it came down to the wire, but it can’t always go your way.”
Momentum shifted in favor of the Redhawks on Schreiber’s touchdown run with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter. Frontier forced two-straight turnovers on downs but was forced to punt before Somerville closed the game with a tackle for a loss on the following drive.
Frontier’s Berkshire County action continues next week as the Redhawks make the voyage out to Cheshire to play the 3-1 Hurricanes. The kickoff at Hoosac Valley is slated for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.
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Lee 6 13 0 0 — 19
Frontier 8 0 6 0 — 14
First Quarter
L — Winston 1 run (kick failed), 5:57.
F — Semaski 43 run (Semaski run), 4:04.
Second Quarter
L — Bartini 9 run (run failed), 4:59.
L — Kinney 8 pass from Siok (kick good), 0:49.
Third Quarter
F — Schreiber 1 run (run failed), 7:12.
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INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing — L: Tyer 6-24; Bartini 14-66; Winston 12-67; Siok 5-13. F: Semaski 10-96; Burt 1-2; Schreiber 5-2; Hoffman 1-(-1); Spearance 6-40.
Passing — L: Siok 9-12-1 113 yards. F: Schreiber 2-6-0 43.
Receiving — L: Ely 1-2; Kinney 5-53 TD; Tyer 2-57; Bartini 1-3. F: Spearance 1-23; Diemand 1-20.
TEAM STATISTICS
Rushing — L: 37-170 (4.59 yards per carry); F: 23-139 (6 yards per carry).
Time of possession — L: 28:51. F: 19:09.
Flags — L: 5; F: 4.