BOW – The end zone was in his sights and Jack Baumann had to get there.
Bow and John Stark are two of the most evenly matched teams in Division II, and both head coaches predicted a low-scoring, tight contest. Any single opportunity to score could win or lose the game.
Stark quarterback Parker McQuarrie found Baumann open on a slant route midway through the third quarter for a 23-yard touchdown, Kayden Easter kicked the ball through the uprights for the extra point and Stark held on for a 7-6 win over the Falcons on a clear Saturday afternoon at Bow High.
“That’s all I had in my mind is: ‘I need to score this right now,’ ” said Baumann, who finished with three catches for 75 yards and picked off a pass on defense.
The win should lock Stark (6-1) into the playoffs. The Generals play Hanover next weekend to close out the regular season.
The future is less certain for Bow (5-2). The Falcons will be in a must-win situation when they host Lebanon next Saturday.
“We know we have one game left for sure,” Bow Coach Paul Cohen said. “If we fail on that attempt, we know we’re done. Even if we win next week, there’s no guarantee.”
The Falcons struck first in the second quarter thanks to a 7-yard sprint to the end zone by Tanner Cammett. But the kick for the extra point missed wide and Bow settled for a 6-0 lead.
“I hoped that wouldn’t hurt us later in the game, and surely enough, that was the difference, ” Cohen said. “Having said that, we had multiple opportunities where the defense did a great job and we were able to start moving things along, but we were just way too inconsistent.”
Stark punted from the 2-yard line with less than a minute left in the first half, giving Bow the ball 30 yards from the end zone. The Generals were pinned up against their own end zone after Ben Kimball sacked McQuarrie for a loss of 14 yards.
The Falcons hoped to at least reach field goal range and take a two-possession lead into halftime, but Baumann intercepted Bow quarterback Matt Harkins on their first play.
“That really changed the game for us,” Baumann said. “It brought us up to a better level right at the half.”
“(Bow was) going in to score, and that would have been huge,” Stark Coach Rod McQuarrie said. “That puts you in quite a hole. But that was a big play and I knew we were going to need to make some big plays against this team.”
Bow still held a 6-0 lead and took possession to start the second half, but Cohen could sense the momentum shifting to the Stark sideline after the interception.
“We were hoping to get another touchdown before the half because that certainly would have swung momentum in our favor,” Cohen said. “At this level, momentum is that intangible factor week in and week out that can literally make or break a game.”
Bow went three-and-out in its first two possessions of the second half. John Stark converted one first down before punting on its first drive.
The Generals got the ball back with 6:22 left in the third quarter after Jacob Cole returned a punt 25 yards to the Bow 35. Cole (23 carries, 80 yards) moved the ball 12 yards on two rushes, bringing Stark up to the 23 where McQuarrie connected with Baumann for a touchdown.
“Baumann has been huge for us all season,” Coach McQuarrie said. “We had him open a couple times where we missed him. Just that type of player for us, a playmaker.”
When the Generals look back on this season, Saturday’s win over Bow and the 16-14 comeback win over Laconia in September will stick out as the important victories that almost got away.
“I’m not sure what it is about us,” Coach McQuarrie said. “We play steady with everybody. Obviously we’re not a blowout team. But it’s us and Bow and it’s been (that way) for years. They’re always tough.”
He continued: “It’s Bow. A lot of these kids … we’ve been playing Bow since the kids were playing for the seventh and eighth grade championship on this exact field. We don’t forget. We know the faces, we know the coaches. Anytime you come to Bow it’s big, especially when you leave with a win.”
(Nick Stoico can be reached at 369-3339, nstoico@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @NickStoico.)
Epping-Newmarket 58, Bishop Brady 55
Key players: Bishop Brady – Rich Sullivan (3 touchdowns)
Highlights/key moments: Sullivan scored three touchdowns in his first game back from an injury. The Giants had a chance to take the lead, but the potential game-winning drive stalled near midfield late in the fourth quarter.
Records: Epping-Newmarket 5-2; Bishop Brady 4-3
Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough 40,
Newfound 38
Key players: I-L/M – Noah Robinson (game-winning TD pass), Mark MacDonald (game-winning TD catch), Damon Patraw (interception), Chase Harper (30 yard TD run), Andrew Brothers (80 yard kickoff return TD), Ryan Caswell (offensive and defensive line), Drew Schriewer (offensive and defensive line)
Highlights/key moments: Trailing with just 47 seconds left in the game, sophomore quarterback Robinson threw a 60-yard touchdown pass to MacDonald, lifting Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough to a win on the road against Newfound. The Bears drove the ball to the 15-yard line, but Patraw intercepted Newfound’s pass with two seconds left to secure the win.
Coach’s quote: “Caswell had a big two-way game for us on at guard and defensive tackle. Schriewer had a big game at defensive tackle.” – I-L/M’s Jon Francis
Records: I-L/M 3-4; Newfound 2-5
Kearsarge 41, Mascoma 0
Key players: Kearsarge – Logan Seaholm (2 rushing TD), Ryan Ellis (rushing TD; interception), Brodie Mulligan (TD reception), Jak Jallah (TD pass; interception)
Highlights/key moments: The Cougars led 14-0 at halftime and scored three third-quarter touchdowns to secure the win over the Royals on Friday night.
Coach’s quote: “I was very pleased with the way our offensive and defensive lines played. They really controlled the line of scrimmage and put us in great situations.” – Kearsarge’s Zach Matthews
Records: Kearsarge 4-3; Mascoma 1-6
Mascoma 5, Hillsboro-Deering 1
Key players: H-D – Teghan Auger (goal), Jack Ferguson (assist), Thomas Ferguson (11 saves)
Highlights/key moments: The Hillcats ended the regular season with a tough loss to the Royals on Friday night.
Coach’s quote: “We had our chances, but just couldn’t capitalize. (Mascoma) played us real hard and it was hard for the boys to pace it.” – H-D’s Glenn Winters
Records: Mascoma 10-5-1; H-D 6-9-1
High school tournaments today
FIELD HOCKEY
Division III quarterfinals
No. 5 Berlin (10-5) at No. 2 Gilford (12-2-1), 2 p.m.
HEAD TO HEAD: Gilford traveled to Berlin and defeated the Mountaineers, 2-0, on Sept. 25.
PREVIOUS TOURNAMENT GAMES: Gilford defeated No. 13 Pembroke, 2-0, in the preliminary round on Thursday. Berlin defeated No. 12 Bow, 4-0.
NOTES: Gilford, the defending D-III champion, is 9-1-1 in its last 11 games and is poised to get back to the final stage of the tournament. First, the Golden Eagles will have to go through the fifth-seed Mountaineers, who are 4-1 in their last five games. Bri Salanitro and Laurel Gingrich gave the Eagles a lift in the second half of their first-round game. The offense will need to be firing at full power against Berlin, which allowed more than two goals in just one game this season.
No. 11 Bishop Brady (7-8) at No. 3 Monadnock (13-2), 2 p.m.
HEAD TO HEAD: Bishop Brady and Monadnock did not meet during the regular season.
PREVIOUS TOURNAMENT GAMES: Bishop Brady hit the road in the first round and defeated No. 6 Hopkinton, 2-1. Monadnock knocked out No. 14 Newport, 4-0, on Thursday.
NOTES: The Giants defeated Hopkinton off a corner in the final second of the first half. Brady will need to keep its scoring hand hot when it goes against the Huskies, who have scored 18 goals in their last three games. Brady has seen superb play from its freshmen this season, and the underclassmen will be put to the test against an experienced Monadnock group.
No. 8 Winnisquam (9-4-2) vs. No. 1 Newfound (14-0), at New Hampton School, 2 p.m.
HEAD TO HEAD: Newfound beat Winnisquam, 2-0, on Sept. 1 and, 3-1, on Oct. 11.
PREVIOUS TOURNAMENT GAMES: Winnisquam won its preliminary round game at defeating No. 9 Mascenic, 2-0. Newfound received a first round bye.
NOTES: Top-ranked and undefeated Newfound is clearly the favorite entering this quarterfinal, having already defeated Winnisquam twice. Newfound has outscored its opponents 67-5 and has not allowed more than a single goal in a match. Winnisquam responded well after its first loss to Newfound and had eight wins and a tie in its next nine matches. Winnisquam lost two games (including the second loss to Newfound) and had a tie in the final three games of the regular-season, but turned things around with a shutout victory in the preliminary round. Newfound is led by a balanced offense. Julianne Marchand, Caroline Marchand, Jasmine Peterson, Kylee MacDonald netted goals against Winnisquam in their contests earlier this season, but Winnisquam also put heavy pressure on Newfound goalie Montana Bassett and avoided getting blown out, unlike other opponents.