WINTHROP — Senior running back Josh Carter said there is only one reason why he scored three touchdowns for the Lisbon Greyhounds on Friday night.
“It was the whole line,” Carter said. “They made the blocks and got the job done.”
The offensive line did what it does best and kept the Greyhounds’ ground game moving as they rolled to a 36-21 victory over Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale in a Class D football game at Maxwell Field.
“It has been kind of our M.O. for the year,” Lisbon coach Chris Kates said. “I thought our kids executed well tonight. I thought Winthrop was a tough team, and they did a lot of good things well. We just happened to bust a couple of long ones. I think they played hard. They moved the ball well. They are a tough team, too.”
Kates added that Lisbon’s ground game works best for this version of the Greyhounds.
“I like to be a little bit more diversified, but this what we are good at this year,” he said. “We are trying to play to our kids’ strength. I am happy with the way we performed tonight.”
The Ramblers got on the board first when running back Dominic Trott scored on a 2-yard run and Isaac Oliviera booted the extra point for a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
Carter went to work on Winthrop in the second quarter. He got free at the Lisbon 22-yard line and bolted for the end zone for a 78-yard TD that instantly stunned the Ramblers.
Carter deliver again with a 4-yard TD that handed Lisbon a 12-7 lead, which they took into halftime.
Lisbon opened the third quarter on their first possession and marched to the Ramblers’ 5-yard line. From there, senior Jack Ramich scored the first of his two touchdowns, putting Greyhounds ahead 20-7.
Winthrop responded on its next possession, which began at its own 37. The Ramblers rushed and passed their way to the Lisbon 18. From there Owen Harding threw a TD pass to Brayden Stubbert, cutting the Greyhounds’ lead to one score, 20-13.
“(Winthrop) is a good team,” Carter said.
But Lisbon pulled away in the fourth quarter. Ramich spilled into the end zone from the 3-yard line and Carter made good on this third touch down on a 22-yard rush. The Greyhounds lead was up to 36-13.
With 4:06 left in the game, Harding connected with Trott with a 35-yard TD pass. Harding also muscled his way into the end zone for the 2-point conversion.
“They were more physical than us. They did a great job with double wing and pounding the ball,” Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale coach Dave St. Hilaire said. “We didn’t have enough answers them tonight.
“It is not like we didn’t practice against it. That’s what we saw. That’s what we knew was coming. They were definitely the better team tonight.”
Both teams finish the regular season with 5-3 records. While the standings aren’t yet official, and Freeport and John Bapst still have a game against each other Saturday, the Greyhounds’ victory appears to have moved them up to second or third place in Class D. The Ramblers likely will be the fourth seed in the playoffs, which begin next week.
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