The defense wasn’t terrible last week. Pat Riberdy just knew it could be better.
And the Winnisquam football coach knew how to fix it, too.
Sporting a new alignment and different players in different positions, the Bears found every answer they needed. Winnisquam overwhelmed its Franklin rivals, coming away with a 33-2 win that lifted its record to 2-1 – and got the team feeling like a winner again on the heels of a 36-0 loss to Newport the previous weekend.
“It was a good bounce-back win,” Riberdy said. “We’re happy to be back to our winning ways. Now we hope to keep that momentum building going forward.”
The win came thanks to a wrinkle Riberdy tried out after reviewing what didn’t work against the Tigers. Winnisquam was getting through the line but over-pursuing the ballcarriers, forcing the deeper tiers of the defense to deal with backs running through open holes.
“We were over-penetrating,” Riberdy said. “Going by guys and leaving linebackers with too much to do.”
The answer was to alter the scheme. Winnisquam switched from a five-man front to a four-man front, and dropped nose tackle Caleb Mulleavey into the linebacker corps. The idea was that linemen Tyler Moran, Colin Catty, Zander House and Cody Griffin would occupy the blockers, and the linebackers would be able to get clearer shots at the backs and more clean blitzes.
And once the Bears took the field against Franklin, that’s just how it panned out.
“We knew Franklin likes to run between the tackles a lot,” Riberdy said. “We just wanted to get the kids moving, and it worked out.”
The changes weren’t just in the front seven. Quarterback Hunter Tierney took over at safety, and Garrett Patten moved up from safety to cornerback to give the secondary a more physical, savvy presence.
“Mentally, the kids responded,” said Riberdy, whose team got eight tackles apiece from Moran (sack) and Bryce Corey. “Sometimes, it’s the simplest things. You move one guy around and the whole thing changes.”
Winnisquam clicked on the offensive side as well. Dominic Lamanuzzi had a 3-yard run and Patten hauled in a 47-yard pass from Tierney to give the Bears a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, and after a Franklin safety, Lamanuzzi punched in his second touchdown with 18 seconds remaining to stretch the first-half lead to 20-2.
Winnisquam iced the game in the third quarter, getting a 3-yard touchdown run from Brendan Vaughn and a 2-yard run from Lamanuzzi, his third score of the game.
Tierney finished with 124 yards passing and the two touchdowns for the Bears, who will look for things to keep clicking when they host Bishop Brady on Friday.
“Just good defense all day,” Riberdy said. “We dominated the line of scrimmage all day.”
Coe-Brown 1, Merrimack Valley 1
Key players: MV – Logan Cassin (goal), Ben Davis (assist); Coe-Brown – Ryan Whitcher (goal), Donald MacCallum (assist), Alex Gray (assist), Nick Sanderson (defense)
Highlights/key moments: MV took the lead on Cassin’s goal with about 17 minutes to play, then had to hang on as the Bears pressed for the equalizer. Coe-Brown got it with less than five minutes left on a tally from Whitcher to salvage a draw.
Coach’s quote: “Although we would have liked to have gotten the win today, this was a complete team effort. We played a great game and created many chances as a team. Defensively we marked up well.” – MV’s Ken Fuller
“It showed their perserverence, that they didn’t fold. They were frustrated, they were expected to have more opportunities than they did. MV did a nice job on defense, they put some pressure on us. … I think it was more frustrating walking out of there with a tie. It felt like a loss.” – Coe-Brown’s Christian Gompert
Records: MV 1-5-1; Coe-Brown 4-2-1
Pittsfield 4, Sunapee 2
Key players: Pittsfield – Cam Darrah (2 goals), Casey Clark (goal), Tyler Prentice (goal)
Highlights/key moments: Eli Johnson played a through ball to Clark for a goal in the second minute, and Darrah added goals in the 18th minute and 32nd minute to give Pittsfield a 3-0 lead.
Records: Pittsfield 5-1-1; Sunapee 3-3
Coe-Brown 2, Merrimack Valley 1
Key players: Coe-Brown – Chelsea McCallion (2 goals), Emily van Gerena (9 saves, first varsity win), Kate Clinch (assist), Olivia Farrar (assist), Summer Barnes (assist); MV – Hanah Corliss (goal), Abby Grandmaison (assist), Maddie Glazier (good goalkeeping)
Highlights/key moments: MV took a quick lead after only two minutes, but McCallion struck twice before the break and the Bears held on in the second half.
Coach’s quote: “We needed a good 80 minutes of soccer and we took major strides getting there today against a tough, skilled and well coached MV squad.” – Coe-Brown’s Josh Hils
“We are simply struggling to find any fight right now.” – MV’s Jeff Richard
Records: Coe-Brown 3-4; MV 1-6
Kennett 3, Merrimack Valley 1
Key players: MV – Jess Mulleavey (goal), Chloe Rattee (assist), Colleen Easler (defense), Grace Blecharzyk (hustle to ball)
Highlights/key moments: Kennett led 2-0 at the break, but MV scored six minutes into the second half to bring it within one. With 43 seconds left, Kennett scored again to ice the game.
Coach’s quote: “We played much better today then in our previous game. We just have to keep working hard and playing better in the circles.” – MV’s Kim Kenney
Records: MV 2-4; Kennett 3-3
Concord second
Key players: Concord – Evan Makris (38, medalist), Thomas Burns (42), Ryan Merchant (43), Hayley Reed (44), Sean McDonough (45)
Highlights/key moments: Makris, a sophomore, was on the practice squad just a few weeks ago, but he’s found his stroke recently and put it all together at the Concord Country Club in this match. Merchant, also a sophomore, had another good day as he continues to establish himself as one of the Tide’s most consistent players.
Records: Concord 6-6; Bedford 15-1; Londonderry 2-10
Farmington 3, Hillsboro-Deering 0
Key players: H-D – Kaelyn Snair (2 kills), Kristina Stevens (2 kills)
Highlights/key moments: The Hillcats struggled to keep up with the Tigers throughout Friday’s match, falling by set scores of 25-6, 25-7 and 25-10.
Records: H-D 1-4; Farmington 3-1
Concord at North/South Invite
Key players: Concord – Jamie Wilkes (16:11), Forest Mackenzie (16:35), Ollie Spencer (16:51), Ryan Devine (16:55), Eli Boesch-Dining (16:57), Alex Duncan (17:17), David Cook (17:24)
Highlights/key moments: With five runners clocking in under 17 minutes, Concord (45) had enough to top Nashua North (46) and Pinkerton (74).
Bobcat Invitational
Key players:Merrimack Valley – David Reynolds (fifth, 17:15.5), Matt Reynolds (27th), Dylan Guinard (46th), Raging River Lynch (78th), Matt Lyle (84th); Hopkinton – Simon Doneski (17th, 17:59.1), Aidan Molnar (45th), Kayl Murdough (64th), Shepyrd Murdough (69th), Caleb Wando (70th); Pembroke – Jason Schoeller (34th, 18:52.7), Josh Crandall (49th), Ryan Burns (57th), Ben Prescott (72nd), Steven Schoeller (76th)
Highlights/key moments: MV totaled 240 points to finish 10th at a meet won by Monadnock (62), with host Oyster River finishing second at 78. Hopkinton (265) and Pembroke (288) were 11th and 12th, respectively.
Bow at St. Johnsbury
Key players: Bow – Robby Ciotti (19:49), Sam Neff (20:17) Calvin Carey (20:31), Henry Tanner (20:38), Caleb Olson (21:16)
Highlights/key moments: The Falcons (71) finished third in a tri-meet against some tough competition – St. Johnsbury (18) and Hanover (49).
Coach’s quote: “This team has shown great improvement and is not afraid to take on some very tough competition. The season looks very promising.” – Bow’s Katie McDonald
Bobcat Invitational
Key players:Merrimack Valley – Kristie Schoffield (fourth, 19:29.0), Lauren Rouse (21st), Noelle Colarusso (24th), Emma York (34th), Tristan Beyer (51st); Hopkinton – Emma Rothe (15th, 21:29.8), Sydney Stockwell (20th), Lily Sabol (37th), Emily Ehrmanntraut (55th), Ella Whipps (63rd); Pembroke – Avery Gamache (49th, 24:38.6), Amanda Montminy (60th), Taylor Beaudoin (64th), Julia Valotto (72nd), Stephanie Berube (74th)
Highlights/key moments: Schoffield’s finish led the Pride to fourth place with 130 points behind Souhegan (39), Oyster River (76) and Winnacunnet (112). Hopkinton (185) was sixth, followed locally by Pembroke (13th, 314)
Bow at St. Johnsbury
Key players: Bow – Sohani Demian (23:32), Sarah Ciotti (25:48), Nandita Kasireddy (25:50), Libby Parker (26:32), Emma Conley (27:35)
Highlights/key moments: Bow (77) finished third in a tri-meet against St. Johnsbury (22) and Hanover (35).