WINTHROP — The depth as a result of the Winthrop and Monmouth football merger paid off for the Ramblers on Saturday.
The Winthrop/Monmouth contingent outlasted Lisbon, taking home a 14-8 victory Saturday in a slugfest at sun-soaked Maxwell Field.
The game was originally scheduled to be played on a cool evening the night before, but issues with the lights moved the game into the daylight and humid conditions.
The Ramblers (1-0) racked up 191 yards on the ground on 55 carries to wear down the visitors. Senior running back Zach Glazier slashed his way to a game-high 147 yards rushing, while fullbacks Dom Cognata and Phil Rowe both scored on short touchdown runs.
“We had one of the top contenders first game,” said Glazier, who suffered through an injury-plagued junior season. “We had the jitters, but we worked hard and it paid off. It felt good.”
Senior safety Brandon Goff had more interceptions (two) than the Greyhounds had pass completions (one). After a long wait to play varsity football, the win against Lisbon (0-1) was a sweet one for Goff.
“It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had, in any sport,” Goff said.
Winthrop/Monmouth suited 53 players, and many of them found action.
“Anytime someone needed a breather, there was somebody behind him,” Goff said.
The teams battled to a scoreless first half. The Ramblers had a golden opportunity on second down from the Lisbon 1 early in the second quarter, but Rowe had the ball stripped on a dive up the middle and Lisbon’s Darren Ward pounced on the loose ball.
The Greyhounds had their own offensive struggles in the first half as they had to fight through bad field position and eight penalties.
“It was penalty after penalty,” Lisbon coach Dick Mynahan said. “We couldn’t run our offense.”
Lisbon tailback Quincy Thompson was kept in check much of the game. He did attempt two runs from punting formation, both coming with the Greyhounds pinned deep in their own territory. He finished with 87 yards on the ground on 20 attempts, but he was hit with cramps along with freshman wingback Noah Francis. Thompson only carried the ball five times in the second half due to the cramping.
Winthrop/Monmouth ended up scoring on its initial drive of the second half. With Glazier picking up 52 yards on seven carries, Winthrop/Monmouth strung together an 11-play, 66-yard drive with Cognata bursting over from three yards out. The subsequent extra point kick was blocked.
Following Goff’s second interception on the next Lisbon series, Winthrop/Monmouth put together another scoring drive.
This time, the Ramblers traveled 67 yards on 14 plays with a 9-yard quarterback sneak by Jared Hanson and an 8-yard pass over the middle from Hanson to Mario Meucci on third down keying the drive. Rowe capped the drive with a 1-yard score.
Lisbon elected to open things up with Thompson at quarterback in the Wildcat formation. In the third quarter he ripped off a 26-yard run. His first attempt in the fourth quarter resulted in a 19-yard pick up, but he was hit with cramps in his calf muscles and although he would perform kicking duties, he was relegated to being a decoy and didn’t touch the ball on offense the rest of the day.
With Thompson out, the Greyhounds relied on 215-pound junior fullback Joe Philbrick and junior scat back Jordon Torres to move the offense.
On the first play after Thompson exited, Torres swept over the right side for 29 yards to the Rambler 39. Two plays later, quarterback Kyle Bourget found Torres deep downfield for 27 yards. On fourth down from the Rambler 7, Bourget’s pitch back to Torres went awry, but Torres scooped up the ball and ran back across the field and around the end for 10 yards to pick up the first down and keep the drive alive. Two plays later, Philbrick pounded over from the 1 and a Torres run converted the 2-point conversion to pull the Greyhounds within six points at 14-8 with just 3:06 left in the game.
The Greyhounds attempted an onside kick, but Thompson’s squib ended up in the hands of a Rambler lineman.
Lisbon’s defense held, but Meucci’s 39-yard punt went out of bounds at the Lisbon 6 with only 1:34 left to play.
The Greyhounds picked up one first down, but their passing game failed them. Three straight incomplete passes were followed by a shotgun snap that sailed over Bourget’s head. The junior signal caller picked up the ball in the end zone, but he had no chance and was sacked by senior defensive tackle Cole Arsenault for a safety.
Lisbon’s second attempt at an onside kick, this time with 23.6 seconds left on the clock, was a mirror image of the first as a Winthrop/Monmouth lineman fell on top of the ball to give the home team the ball.
“The depth was huge for us,” said Winthrop/Monmouth coach Joel Stoneton. “We were able to roll someone else in there. We’re two deep in every position.”
Stoneton’s biggest worry heading into the game was how the Monmouth players would react to not only varsity football, but going up against such a formidable opponent in week number one.
“When we came down (on the field) last night, we were ready,” Stoneton said. “(Not being up) was my fear, but they responded.”
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