BOW – After losing its two previous games, the Bow High School football team spent the past week doing some soul searching. A third consecutive loss would effectively dash any playoff aspirations and the Falcon seniors would have to live with knowing that result was their final game on their home field.

But Bow rose to the occasion. Junior running back Chase Flagg ran for three touchdowns and 92 yards on 24 carries, senior Brady Lover had a game-ending interception with 1:11 left in the fourth quarter and the Falcons defeated John Stark, 19-14, in a physical battle on senior day.

Both teams are now 4-3 and control their own playoff destiny over the final two weeks of the regular season.

“This was a much-needed win on a variety of levels,” Bow head coach Paul Cohen said. “Not even taking into account the postseason, but the fact that we lost two in a row on the road. There was little bit of soul searching this week. We kept saying, ‘I’m waiting for you guys to play to your potential.’ Last week, we bent and we broke … This week we bent, but we

After a three and out and forcing the Generals to punt on the game’s opening drive, the Falcons established their running game, with four backs taking handoffs. 

Junior running backs Miles Miller (50 yards on seven carries) and Caleb Schumacher (46 yards on 13 carries, and running back/quarterback Lover (44 yards on 10 carries and 0-for-3 passing) all helped move the chains, but none of them took as much of a beating as Flagg.

Flagg took every single one of 24 handoffs right up the middle, running between the tackles when he could, but more often than not lowering his shoulder into Stark’s formidable defensive line and linebackers and pushing forward. Several times, especially in the second, Flagg would be at the center of a large scrum of players, but proved to be hard to bring down, moving the pile forward on multiple occasions, with the help of his teammates.

“Working the inside run is obviously my O-line,” Flagg said. “I rely on them so much. I can run hard, but I can't run hard if I don't have them there. When I feel their hands pushing behind me, I know I have my whole team behind my back. That’s how we win games.”

Flagg scored from the 6 to and senior kicker Kody McCranie connected on the extra point to give Bow a 7-0 lead at 4:38 in the first quarter.

John Stark sophomore running back AJ Bellen (77 yards on four carries) ripped off a 65 yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage on the next drive and senior quarterback Joey Dykstra ran in the two-point conversion to give the Generals an 8-7 lead at 4:26.

Senior Jackson Hall gave Bow another advantage with some heads up play, recovering a fumble on a muffed punt return by Stark, giving the Falcons the ball on the Generals’ 49. 

Flagg punched in a 2 yard TD run to give Bow a 13-8 lead with 3:55 left in the half, which is also what the scoreboard read at halftime.

John Stark senior Weston Haartz (34 yards on six carries) scored a 7-yard touchdown to put the Generals up 14-13 midway through the third quarter, but Flagg responded by scoring his third touchdown of the game (this one from the 1) to give Bow a 19-14 lead with 6:54 left in the fourth. 

Flagg ran for 60 yards and had 15 carries in the second half. 

“He’s got a good combination of size and speed, and he’s actually fairly elusive at times, which we saw today,” Cohen said. “He’s a great team player. Very coachable and he played very well.”

Both teams are known for strong ground games and being physical on the line, and it played to both teams’ strengths.

“It’s the type of game we love,” Flagg said. “We say play Bow football, we play hard football. Playing hard, hitting hard and respecting the other team. (John Stark) played well too, you’ve got to respect your adversaries. …I try to just bring intensity. I have teammates that are really quick. These are fast guys. I don’t have the same speed, but I know I can put my shoulder down and get the yards that we need so those guys can make big plays.”

Dykstra, one of the best players in Division II, kept the Generals in it with strong performances on both sides of the ball. He picked up 56 yards on the ground on 10 carries, and had a fumble recovery and two tackles for loss.

But he went 1-for-6 with minus-3 passing yards and Lover’s interception with 1:11 left meant that all Bow had to do was take a knee to run out the clock. 

Dale Berg and Schumacher both had two tackles for loss to lead the Falcon defense.

“He played a hell of a game today. He was a warrior out there,” John Stark head coach Ray Kershaw said.

Running back Drew Tower threw a 24-yard completion to Noah Redman on a trick play, while Redman and Jacob Winn each had a sack to lead Stark’s defense.

“It was a hard fought game. We knew it would be a tough one,” Kershaw said. “(Bow) is big up front. …We knew going into it, it would go right down to the wire, and it did.”

While the win keep’s Bow’s fate in its own hands, it is still likely that Saturday was the last time that the team’s 12 seniors – Thomas Schlegel (sack, tackle for loss), Lover, McCranie, Eli Smith, Harrison Denise, Adam Auclair, Jonathan Gancarz, Maddox Leclair, Hall, Sam Hammond, Clayton Kenneson and Ethan Conway – played a football game on that field.

The Falcons are currently tied for fifth in D-II with Manchester West (West is 5-2, but the two teams have an identical rating, which is what determines seeds, not records), but have two tough games on the road coming up against Pembroke and Trinity, who just ended Pelham’s 47-game winning streak on Friday night.

“I think what sums it best is what one of the captains said right as they came together at the end of the game. He said, ‘You know, I’m glad this wasn’t a blowout. It made it more exciting and memorable for us. This is a game (the seniors) and their parents will always remember.”

Cohen added, “This team has the potential to do very well. We haven’t always played well. The last two weeks we didn’t, but today when we really needed to put it together, we did.”

Bow next plays at Pembroke on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. John Stark will host Manchester West on Saturday at 1 p.m.