STOUGHTON, Mass. - Stoughton didn’t need a last-minute game-winning drive against Canton this time.
The Black Knights were in full control from start to finish and bested the Bulldogs, 34-0, for their second straight win on Thanksgiving.
During the regular season, it took Stoughton until the final play to complete a wild comeback against Canton. On Thanksgiving, the Black Knights scored on five consecutive drives between the second and third quarters and their defense allowed less than 100 yards.
“I can’t be anymore pleased with our effort for this season,” Stoughton head coach Greg Burke said. “The defense played well, Canton has been putting up some points so I’m happy with that. It’s nice to win and we sort of dominated there.”
After each team punted twice, Canton went for it on fourth down and one at the Stoughton 38. The Black Knights defense came up with the stop and used that momentum to get on the scoreboard. Junior quarterback Jake Gibb hit Ryan Sullivan twice to get inside the red zone and two plays later, Gibb connected with senior Alex Accavatti for a 14 yard touchdown.
The first score game with 5:34 left in the first half. Before their was less than five minutes to go, Stoughton doubled their lead. On the ensuing kickoff after Accavatti’s touchdown, the Bulldogs lost the football and Stoughton took over. Senior Joey Girolamo took the first carry for 31 yards all the way to the Canton 1-yard line. The next carry went to Girolamo again and he plunged into the end zone to make it 14-0 in a 26 second span.
Stoughton’s defense continued to limit the Bulldogs offense and were able to get the ball back after forcing a punt. From there, the Black Knights drove 67 yards on seven plays, capped off with an 8 yard pass from Gibb to Sullivan to make it 21-0 heading into halftime.
The second half was more of the same for Stoughton. Canton punted on the opening drive and the Black Knights made it four straight drives with a touchdown. Stoughton drove 77 yards on eight plays, mostly runs. Rushes from Girolamo, Sullivan and Xzavian Marrero, as well as a pass from Gibb to Brandon Swain-Price, set the Black Knights up in the red zone. From there, Marrero took a handoff up the left side and scampered into the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown. Stoughton took a 28-0 lead midway through the third quarter.
Canton couldn’t muster up a first down and after a punt, Stoughton took over at the Bulldogs 48-yard line. Gibb connected with Swain-Price for 18 yards and then capped the drive with another pass to Swain-Price, the touchdown reception coming on a 16 yard slant.
The Bulldogs had their best drive of the game at the end of the fourth quarter, but it was halted when Swain-Price picked up his third interception just before the goal line to seal the deal.
Gibbs finished 8/11 for 117 yards, Girolamo added 126 yards on the ground on 15 carries and Swain-Price and Sullivan each had a team-high three catches.
Canton senior quarterback Brian Hagan finished 6/12 for 63 yards and senior Kevin Wing had 14 yards on three carries.
Stoughton finishes the season 9-2 while Canton finishes 6-5.
Click here for a full photo gallery of the game.
Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.