GLOUCESTER — After going up by three touchdowns at halftime, the Lynn Classical football team had to hold on to take down Gloucester, 21-19, in a battle of unbeatens at Newell Stadium on Friday night.
On the offensive end, it was junior quarterback Keith Ridley who led the way for the Rams. Ridley completed 9-of-18 passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing one touchdown. Wide receivers Nashaun Butler (three catches for 62 yards and one touchdown) and Tyrese Joseph (three catches for 48 yard and one touchdown) also had big games.
“Keith has been huge for us all year so far,” said Classical coach Brian Vaughan. “He’s a big guy with a live arm that can do so many things for us, and we saw it tonight. Two great touchdown passes and then a solid touchdown run, can’t ask for much more than that.”
The Classical defense had a dominant first half, but showed signs of weakness in the second half. Despite it all, the Rams were able to force two turnovers to help aid them in the win.
“Turnovers are something we focus on in practice every day, and it’s shown up in the games so far,” Vaughan said. “We’ve gotten at least one turnover in each game so far, so we obviously want to keep that going to give us the best chance to win each game.”
The game got off to a bit of a slow start on both sides, but that all changed with about three minutes left in the first quarter. The Rams defense forced and recovered a fumble, setting them up at the Gloucester 47-yard line. It didn’t take long for Classical to capitalize, as Ridley launched a perfect 47-yard pass to Butler on third down to give the Rams a lead.
Things didn’t get much better for Gloucester in the second quarter. After a three-and-out and a penalty on the punt, Classical took over near midfield. Ridley completed passes to Butler and Adam Washington before eventually scoring himself on a five-yard touchdown run.
Gloucester got the ball back, but quarterback Matt Smith was sacked on first down and tackled behind the line on second down to set up a third-and-long. He tried to get it all back in one pass and ended up throwing an interception to Classical’s Jeffrey Hill. Then, on the first play of the ensuing Classical drive, Ridley threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Joseph to make it 21-0 at the half.
Gloucester finally got its offense going in the second half. Aided by three Classical penalties, the Fishermen drove 63 yards for a score to open the half, capped off by a 25-yard touchdown run from Jan Pena-Ortiz.
The Fishermen then forced a three-and-out and got the ball back, going on a 10-play, 71-yard scoring drive that took over five minutes off the clock and ended with a one-yard touchdown run from Ryan Argentino. After a missed extra point, the score stood at 21-13 Classical.
The Rams offense still couldn’t get it going, and after a fairly short drive they punted back to Gloucester. The Fishermen moved into Classical territory, but ended up facing a fourth-and-eight with under seven minutes remaining. It was then that quarterback Matt Smith broke free and rushed for a 35-yard touchdown to make it 21-19. Smith then tried to convert for two points, but failed, and the score remained 21-19 in favor of Classical.
After another failed drive by Classical, it all came down to one final drive for Gloucester. The Fishermen got the ball back with 3:55 on the clock and ran 14 plays, but couldn’t get any further than the 35-yard line. Smith tried to win it with a hail mary pass on the final play, but it fell incomplete and Classical walked away with the win.
The Rams (4-0) will battle Danvers next Friday night at 7 p.m.