It wasn’t the same blowout victory the Bulldogs had become accustomed to in the early part of the season, but Old Rochester Regional football was still able to survive Dighton-Rehoboth, 20-14, keeping the dream of an unbeaten season alive.
“We responded to adversity,” ORR coach Justin Kogler said following the Friday night win. “We haven’t had much of it and D-R certainly provided [some] tonight, as I knew they would. We had to have faith and trust in each other.”
Stating that the Bulldogs “haven’t had much” adversity in 2018 is putting it mildly. The Falcons 13 points on Friday night were the first 13 points scored against ORR this season. Even after that, the Bulldogs have outscored opponents 143-13 through 16 quarters of play (four games).
“It’s a fight,” said ORR linebacker Dylan DeWolfe. “Every person has to fight back. They definitely fought back. It was a heavyweight fight and there were a lot of haymakers being thrown. But we came out on top.”
Unlike the previous three games, Kogler had to rely heavily on DeWolfe and the rest of the defense against Dighton-Rehoboth. As much as ORR’s defense has played well in each game, the Bulldogs offense has played just as well, averaging 41 points per game.
But with their star running back, Will Garcia, out the entire contest, Kogler had to rely on Jackson Cote(90 yards on 13 carries), who scored the game-winning touchdown, Desmond Dias(two touchdowns, 24 yards on seven carries), and Anthony Childs(71 yards on 11 carries) to pack a punch on the ground.
“Jackson Cote really showed up tonight,” DeWolfe said. “That was huge. We needed that. He ran the ball really well.”
ORR with 274 yards on the ground, with Cole McIntyrecompleting one of his three passes for 49 yards to Tyler Noeand rushing for 21 yards on seven carries.
The Bulldogs (4-0, 3-0 South Coast Conference Large) put their undefeated season to the test on Friday against Somerset-Berkley. If the Bulldogs win, they lock up the SCC Large title and earn a spot in the SCC championship game. If ORR loses, there will be a three-way tie, decided by a coin clip, due to the fact that Somerset-Berkley lost to Dighton-Rehoboth this season and all three teams are battling for the top spot.
Maddie Demanchereturned from her ACL injury on Monday to help ORR girls soccer blow past GNB Voc-Tech, 5-0, scoring a goal and assisting another. The Bulldogs were led in scoring by Jillian Kutash, who scored twice, along with Meg Hughesand Isabella Wierzbicki, who also scored one apiece. Hughes, Wierzbicki, Mary Butler, and Nikki Fantonieach had an assist, as well.
ORR (8-1, 7-0 SCC Large) remains undefeated in SCC play, and has won eight games in a row.
Old Colony
After failing to score in the 8-0 loss to Upper Cape football, Old Colony’s first loss of the season, the Cougars made sure there wasn’t a tight margin, winning 22-8 against Blue Hills. It took a while, though, for the offense to get rolling, with the Cougars not scoring until the third quarter. Kyle Scholzscored first for the Cougars on a 65-yard run, which was followed up by a two-point conversion by Matt Bumpus. Scholz led Old Colony with 98 yards on eight carries, scoring the one touchdown. Bumpus also scored Old Colony’s last touchdown, coming in the fourth quarter. He logged 76 yards on 14 carries. Phil Proctorscored once on the ground for the Cougars, as well. His touchdown came in the fourth quarter to make it 16-0, which he followed with a two-point conversion. Proctor finished with 70 yards on five rushes. Neither Old Colony nor Blue Hills made a passing attempt.
The Cougars (3-1) host South Shore on Friday at 7:00 pm.
Old Colony golf (4-3-2, 4-3-2 Mayflower Small Vocational) continues to build a postseason-caliber resume, winning Monday’s match 6-3 over Southeastern. Preston Forcierand Anthony Wrightled the charge, winning their individual matches to also combine for best ball, accounting for three of the Cougars’ six points. Joel Cortesalso won his individual match, as did Lucas Correia. Cortes combined with Brian Kuketzto win best ball, too.
Tabor Academy
Tabor Academy girls soccer followed up its 6-1 win over the Middlesex School with a 4-2 win on the road against Phillips Andover. Cat Barryhad another stellar performance for the Seawolves, finishing with a hat track and an assist. Her first goal was assisted by Brooke Ingemi, while the other two came on passes from Jaydah Bedoya. Bedoya also scored Tabor’s fourth and final goal. Tabor goalie Julia Saunessyfinished with nine saves in net.
Tabor (4-1) follows up Wednesday’s matchup against Noble and Greenough with a 4:30 pm trip to Thayer Academy on Saturday.
High School Update
By Nick Friar