66°
WESTBOROUGH, Mass. — The final minutes of the first half spelled out the story of Westborough's 35-14 football loss to Hudson in the Rangers home opener.
Hudson's Dan Bothwell scored on a four-yard run to put the Hawks up 13-7 with 2:58 left in the second quarter. Westborough was forced to punt, leading to a 65-yard punt return touchdown by Robert Brisbois. Four plays later, a Dan Orlando fumble turned into a 35-yard recovery touchdown and a 20-point halftime deficit.
"I thought we were moving the ball well. We just shot ouselves in the foot and that really killed us," said Orlando, who threw for 148 yards and a touchdown. "That's the way it's been so far this year. We've just been giving up big plays when we shouldn't be."
The result drops the Rangers to 0-3 after losses to Shepherd Hill and Holy Name. Coach Mark Ellis said he saw positive things from his team offensively and defensively, but special teams is an area of concern.
"I thought we had a very good game plan, the guys were ready, they were well prepared this week. At times they just over think what's going on around them instead of just doing what they've done all week," said Ellis, in his 11th season as the Rangers' head coach. "On special teams, we've got to go back to the drawing board."
Hudson did the majority of its damage on the ground, rushing for over 200 yards between Bothwell, Darnell Butler, Daniel Mendes and Jesse Nemerowicz. Butler, who had over 100 yards himself, was the Hawk that scooped up Orlando's fumble.
"We just had to set the tone and let them know what was going on," Butler said.
One bright spot for the Rangers was senior Anthony Phillips, who ran for 93 yards and a touchdown on five carries. Phillips broke a 66-yard run to set up his own rushing touchdown early in the second quarter.
"When they keep driving on you, and driving on you, it gets pretty tiring," Orlando said. "We were feeling good, just too many dumb mistakes."
--
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
H - Darnell Butler 55 run (kick failed), 9:16
Second Quarter
W - Anthony Phillips 5 run (Jack Chuma kick), 6:48
H - Dan Bothwell 4 run (Dan Mendes kick), 2:58
H - Robert Brisbois 65 punt return (Mendes kick), 1:03
H - Darnell Butler 35 fumble recovery (Mendes kick), 0:14
Third Quarter
W - Rick Casparriello 5 pass from Dan Orlando (Chuma kick), 8:32
H - Mendes 5 run (David Rogers run), 4:35
Fourth Quarter
NO SCORING
Final: Hudson 35, Westborough 14
Comments