LYNNFIELD — The Lynnfield High football team remained undefeated last night with a 47-6 rout over a young Winthrop team at Pioneer Stadium.
If fans were hoping for a sequel to the last time the two teams met in Lynnfield in 2014, a game that went right down to the wire before Lynnfield pulled away to a 35-21 win and the Division 4 North title, they didn’t get it.
This year, the game was over midway through the second quarter when Pioneers’ junior backup quarterback Brett Cohee sprinted 10 yards into the end zone to put the Pioneers ahead 40-6 after senior captain Cooper Marengi split the uprights with his fifth extra point of the evening.
Lynnfield was unstoppable, needing only 14 snaps to find the end zone on its first six possessions of the first half. Only one Pioneer possession lasted more than three plays and that was on the final drive of the game which ended at the Winthrop 9 after sophomore quarterback Clayton Marengi took a couple of knees with under a minute to play.
“I thought Winthrop was young last year, but this year you could see that they are an extremely young team, so it was tough for them, and I know because we’ve been there and done that,” said Lynnfield head coach Neal Weidman. “They are a good program with tough kids and a really good coach in Sean Driscoll, so they will remember this experience and be better for it in the future. For us, it was an opportunity and a benefit to be able to play some kids, especially because their JV game got canceled this week, so it was good time for them.”
Having said all of that, Winthrop got off to a decent start, despite going 3-and-out on its first possession, answering a 59-yard Nick Kinnon touchdown run on the the Pioneers’ first offensive play of the game with a 1-yard touchdown run by Vikings’ senior quarterback Jake Adamson.
That was as good as it got for Winthrop as Lynnfield went on to score in no time flat on each of its next five possessions. Five Pioneers got in on the action.
Senior captain Anthony Murphy (3 carries, 21 yards) got things going with a 2-yard plunge, capping a 3-play, 22-yard drive. Senior Peter Look set up the score with a 60-yard kickoff return to the Vikings’ 22.
Tyler Murphy set up the next Pioneer score with a 21-yard punt return to the Winthrop 45 after another Vikings’ 3-and-out.
Lynnfield need just one play, albeit a lucky one, to cash in. Senior quarterback Matt Mortellite tossed the pigskin to Kinnon on an option, then Kinnon sprinted down the left sideline only to fumble at the 10 after hurdling over a Winthrop defender. The ball took a perfect bounce right into Kinnon’s hands, who never broke stride on his way into the end zone for his second score in as many touches. Marengi added the extra point to make it 20-6 with 3:35 left in the first quarter.
Sophomore John Lee then scored his first varsity touchdown, and Peter Look had a big 21-yard reception from Mortellite to set up the score.
With 3:21 left in the half, Murphy (3 carries, 49 yards) found paydirt from 30 yards out to stretch the Pioneers’ lead to 33-6 after Marengi’s extra point.
Winthrop fumbled away the ensuing kickoff, giving the Pioneers the ball with under three minutes to go in the half.
Weidman went to the bench at this point with Cohee replacing Mortellite (3-for-3 90 yards) under center. Cohee needed just three plays to score from the 10 to make it 40-6 (Marengi kick).
Lynnfield went 3-and-out on the first possession of the second half, but needed just one play on its next drive to find the end zone. Cohee (2 carries, 95 yards) did the honors, outrunning the pack from 85 yards out to cap the scoring with his second career varsity score.
While Lynnfield has cruised to easy wins in the last two weeks, Weidman said he knows things will be a lot more challenging the final three weeks of the regular season before the playoff season.
“We will be tested the next three weeks with three big league games (Ipswich, Hamilton-Wenham, Manchester-Essex), that’s for sure, so right now, we can only think one game ahead,” he said. “We have seen Hamilton-Wenham and they look pretty solid, and haven’t seen Ipswich or Manchester yet, but know that Manchester is a much improve team and scoring a lot of points, so we will be challenged.”
Lynnfield’s next game is at Ipswich next Friday night at 7.