DALTON, Mass. — The Wahconah football team was down eight points heading into half-time but came out in the second half and scored 26 unanswered points as it beat the visiting Agawam, 32-14, to win a third consecutive Western Massachusetts Division 4 championship.
The win completed an undefeated Western Mass season for Wahconah as it now advances to the D4 state semifinal at Westfield State, where it will take on Shephard Hill next Saturday.
The night got off to a great start for Wahconah as it got the ball first, picked up three first downs on the drive and capped it off with a 16-yard touchdown strike from senior quarterback Nick Clayton to classmate Ryan Washburn. The two-point conversion was no good but the Warriors were up early 6-0.
The rest of the first half did not go as planned though. Wahconah was unable to pick up any more first downs as they punted on two of their next three possessions and turned the ball over on downs after going for it on fourth down and two, coming up inches short. On top of the poor play by the offense, the defense had their hands full with trying to contain Agawam senior running back Giovanni Russo. Russo gashed the Warriors for 92 yards and two touchdowns in the first half including four runs of 16 or more yards. One of them was a 20-yard scamper for touchdown with 12.6 seconds left on the clock before half which gave the Brownies their eight-point lead heading into the break.
"No panic," said Wahconah coach Gary Campbell Jr about how his team was feeling at halftime. "No panic, some adjustments had to be made just like every single game but it's about competition. It wouldn't be a competition if it was 34-0 every time. So for them to go in and understand that they are in a dogfight and understand that we need to make some adjustments, but still come out and play the solid fundamental football that got you here."
"I think a major reason we were able to come back is because we have been here before," added senior Marco Anastasio. "We know how to handle ourselves and we just came out and played our hearts out. We pretty much went in at halftime and changed our whole defense up. We went from a 4-3 to a 4-4. I think that really helped us on the inside."
The change definitely made the difference as the Wahconah defense dominated in the second half and it all started on a interception by junior defensive back Evan Garvey. Garvey had been challenged all game long by Brownie quarterback Troy Gaileraini, and despite knocking down multiple passes he dropped what looked like a sure interception late in the second quarter. Coming out of intermission though things turned his way when on just the third play of the half he intercepted Gaileraini and returned it into Brownie territory to give Wahconah great field position to start a drive.
The offense took advantage and just two plays later Clayton found Washburn again, this time from 23 yards out to close the lead to just two. Feeding off of the momentum of the interception and quick touchdown, the Warrior defense forced Agawam into a quick three and out. A booming punt by the Brownies pinned Wahconah deep down on their own 6-yard line but Wahconah was starting to heat up.
It marched 94 yards, sucking up the rest of the clock in the third quarter before Clayton hit senior Quinn Caesar on a swing pass to the right sideline, Caesar saw an open lane to the end zone and exploded through it for Wahconah's second touchdown of the quarter. The two-point conversion failed but Wahconah was back ahead, 18-14, heading into the fourth quarter.
The Agawam offense took over to start the final quarter and after picking up one first down, the drive stalled and they were forced to punt. A bad snap forced the punter to scramble and he was swallowed up quickly, losing two yards in the process. Wahconah wasted no time, the drive started on the Brownie 45 and after gaining three yards on first down, Clayton hooked up with junior Cole Morrison for a 42-yard touchdown catch pushing the score to 24-14.
Another three and out by Agawam gave Wahconah the ball back on the plus-23 with a little over six minutes remaining in the game. Wahconah added some insurance on a 3-yard touchdown run by Clayton on fourth down. This time the Warriors converted the two-point conversion and their lead increased to 28.
Clayton put on a dominant performance despite freezing temperatures and strong winds as he helped score all five of Wahconah's touchdowns. He finished the game with 127 yards passing and four touchdowns through the air to go with the one rushing score.
"All I can say is, he's got 24 touchdown passes and zero interceptions," said Campbell about his quarterback. "Not too shabby."
Asked what it takes to win the Western Mass Super Bowl three years in a row, Campbell said, "Hard work, commitment to each other and commitment year round. We have a ton of two and three sport athletes, but they find time at 6:30 in morning during basketball season to come in and lift.
"They find time to come and lift at 6:30 in the morning during baseball and lacrosse season. They go after practice in spring and winter, so they continuously work hard and just go out on their own to chuck the ball around. They have a taste of it and once you have a taste of that, you don't ever want to give it up. I applaud them for that because sometimes you sit back and become a fat cat and sit there and go 'hey we're the best'.
"They haven't done that so I'm really proud of them for that. So I think that's what it takes. Commitment to each other. Commitment to the program and commitment to being the best."
