Week 4 Football: Early scores help Franklin Tech defeat Athol at rainy O’Brien Field, 16-12 (PHOTOS)

ATHOL — With rain pouring down, and a mud bowl forming at O’Brien Field, points were going to be at a premium between Athol and Franklin Tech on Friday. 

The Eagles managed to capitalize on a pair of turnovers and converted both two-point tries to take a 16-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Bears defense dug in from there, keeping Franklin Tech off the scoreboard the rest of the way. 

Athol capitalized on turnovers itself, scoring a pair of touchdowns, but the hosts were unable to make either two-point try which turned out to be the difference in the game,. The Eagles squeezed out a 16-12 Intercounty League North victory. 

“We knew this game wasn’t going to be decided by which team had the better roster,” Franklin Tech coach Joe Gamache said. “It was going to be decided by which team made the least amount of mistakes. Fortunately we didn’t make many outside of a couple turnovers. Everybody is turning it over in this weather.” 

The Bears (2-2 overall, 0-1 IL North) lost to Lee after failing to punch in a touchdown following a long drive in the fourth quarter last week. 

Athol faced the same situation on Friday. Trailing 16-12, the Bears got the ball back at their own 33 with 9 minutes, 52 seconds remaining in the game. With the passing game rendered nearly obsolete due to the rain, Athol was forced to rely on its run game to march down the field and it did just that, converting a pair of fourth downs while also picking up a third-and-seven — all thanks to the legs of Sawyer Lefsyk — to march down to the Tech 25. 

The Bears faced a fourth-and-6 from the Eagles 21 with 1:13 to play and put the ball in Lefsyk’s hands. The junior was met near the line of scrimmage and a barrage of Franklin Tech defenders came in to stop him three yards short of the line to gain. 

Franklin Tech (3-1, 1-0) took over and was able to run a pair of plays before taking a knee to seal the win. 

“Franklin Tech played a great game,” Athol coach Josh Talbot said. “Again we came up a play short. We had a chance to right our demons from last week but here we are in sorrow again. You are what your record says you are and right now, apparently, we’re a mediocre football team. We’ll get back to work.

“We shot ourselves in the foot quite often in the first half,” Talbot continued. “We did the same thing last week. If a team continues to do that, that’s bad coaching and is something the coach needs to do something about. In the end it comes back to me.” 

It was another big stop for the Eagles defense, which came up with three turnovers and stopped Athol on downs three times. 

“The guys we’ve had on defense have been stepping up all year,” Gamache said. “They’ve been tough and have played physical. We had some guys fill in tonight and they stepped up and did a good job. Our defensive line did great. We have some young guys who really can get off the ball.” 

Athol got the ball first but put it on the ground on its first snap of the game, with Franklin Tech recovering and taking over at the Bears 20. 

Josiah Little took a toss play nine yards into the end zone just four plays later to give the Eagles the early lead. Franklin Tech had a hold on its first two-point try but Gabe Tomasi was able to connect with Nate Sabolevski for the conversion from the 12, giving the Eagles an 8-0 lead just two minutes in. 

“First play of the game, we get a turnover and we’re able to put something together and punch it in,” Gamache said. “I was a little disappointed in the initial two-point try with the penalty but we came back and Nate did a nice job. Gabe hit him with a good throw and that gave us momentum early.” 

Athol was forced to punt on its second possession of the game and once again, Mother Nature took over. With the ball wet, the snap on the punt was fumbled, allowing the Eagles to take over at the Bears 9. 

The favor was returned, as Little fumbled on the second play in the red zone to give the Bears the ball right back. 

Athol reached the Eagles 30 but turned it over on downs. Little picked up a fourth-and-6 and on the next play, Tomasi kept it on a quarterback keeper up the middle and scored on a 26-yard run. Tomasi’s two-point pass was tipped but caught by Will Ainsworth off the deflection, giving Tech a 16-0 lead with 33 seconds left in the quarter. 

Athol capitalized on a turnover to close out the first half. The Eagles fumbled on their own 10 and the Bears jumped on it with 1:36 to play in the half. 

Despite the conditions, Aidan Melanson tossed a fade to Aaron Ouellet, who skied to make the catch in the end zone and get Athol on the board. Melanson was stopped on the two-point try, with Tech taking a 16-6 lead into the half. 

“They still did a nice job with their passing game despite the elements,” Gamache said. “They hit some nice passes. Gabe hit the conversion but other than that, the passing game isn’t built for these conditions. It makes both teams one dimensional. The good news was our kids were a touch tougher tonight and it paid off.” 

The Bears defense took over the game after the Eagles took the early lead. After Tech went up 16-0, it failed to pick up a first down the rest of the way, with Athol keying on the run game. 

With neither team able to do much offensively, the Bears needed a turnover to get back in the game and got it at the end of the quarter. 

Backed up at their own 21, the Eagles were forced to punt. Just like earlier in the game for the Bears, Tech was unable to secure the snap, with Athol taking over at the Eagles 4. 

Lefsyk barreled in from five yards out two plays later, but Dominic Curtis was unable to make it in on the two-point try to leave it a 16-12 game.

“In the end the weather played a factor but it was the same for both teams,” Talbot said. “They got one cheap touchdown on a punt attempt and we got a cheap touchdown off a punt attempt. It was a good football game and an evenly-matched football game. I give credit to Joe and his staff. Those guys were ready to go.”

Next up for Athol is a trip down to Ware next Friday while the Eagles will play host to Palmer.