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11/28/2015 11:00 PMThe East Haven football team put together one of its best campaigns in recent memory this year, but unfortunately for the Yellowjackets, their quest to reach the postseason for the first time in program history came up one win short.
East Haven traveled to Branford for the 74th edition of the Beehive Bowl on Thanksgiving Day, needing a victory to make the Class M State Playoffs. Although the Yellowjackets took the early lead, the Hornets tied the game in the second quarter, took the lead in the fourth, and hung on for a 10-7 win that prevented East Haven from competing in the second season as the team finished 10th in the Class M rankings at 7-3. Branford now leads the all-time series 38-32-4.
“It was actually very difficult,” Head Coach Melvin Wells said. “At the end of the day, Branford did a nice job of putting themselves in a position to be successful. We didn’t capitalize on our opportunities.”
East Haven started the game quickly by driving down the field and scoring on its opening possession of the game. Quarterback Trevor Angelo connected with receiver Mike Griffith for a 31-yard touchdown with 5:23 to go in the quarter and the Yellowjackets were up 7-0. However, from that point forward, Branford halted East Haven’s offense.
“For the most part, they did a nice job. They neutralized our offensive line. The big part of a game like Thanksgiving Day is it’s the last, determining game for a lot of teams. It turns into a pressure or do-or-die type situation. I don’t know if we were as ready as we needed to be for that type of pressure,” Wells said. “It was a playoff-type atmosphere and, when in that situation, you really have to focus 100 percent of time. The first team that makes a mistake is the one that ends up on short end of the stick.”
In the second quarter, Branford (5-5) tied the game when quarterback Griffin Lynch hit Luke DiStasio in the left flat. He made a few moves and went 78 yards for the score.
“Defensively, we played superb, minus the one play where they slipped a few tackles and scored,” Wells said. “We held them offensively to little yardage and did what we needed to do, but they were strong. They scouted what we did and when we did make plays. We either had a penalty or something came up where we ended up punting or turning the ball over.”
With the game tied at 7, a huge play came early in the fourth quarter, when Austin Thornberg went to punt the ball away from his own 24-yard line. Branford’s Jackson Seward blocked Thornberg’s rugby-style punt, giving Branford possession on the 12 to set up the go-ahead 24-yard field goal by Teddy Gionteris with 8:27 to go in the game.
“We’ve been good on special teams all year long. Branford did a great job of scouting Thornberg. We trust him wholeheartedly. They made a play when it needed to be made,” Wells said. “We worked extremely hard, but when you play this game, you have to play it 100 percent all the way through and we just fell short.”
East Haven still had a chance on its final possession. The Yellowjackets worked their way into Hornets’ territory and gave freshman kicker Evan Damian a chance to tie the game. Damian lined up a 37-yard attempt with 1:28 to go and put everything he had into it. The kick had the height and was on line, but came up just short.
“Evan has saved our season on numerous occasions. He’s done a great job all the way through,” Wells said. “We wanted everyone to be perfect, but it was just unfortunate. He had the height and the direction, but it fell a little short. At the end of the day, there were 101 plays before the field goal attempt that created that situation we were in. We were proud of his effort and look forward to three more years with him to be successful on his part.”
East Haven finished the game with 300 yards on offense. Angelo went 4-of-10 passing for 92 yards with the one touchdown and one interception. Griffith caught two passes for 67 yards and the score, plus McClay Marshall hauled in two passes for 25 yards. On the ground, Thornberg led the Yellowjackets with 87 yards and Marshall finished with 67. Griffith’s lone carry went for 33 yards and Dominic Manna rushed for 21 yards.
Defensively, four Yellowjackets finished with double-digit tackles. Niam Coward led the way with 15, Steve DellaCamera finished with 13, and Noah Parlato and Noah Fiorillo had 11 each. Parlato and Mike Crosby both had two sacks and Mark Moreno had one. Griffith and Thornberg each intercepted a pass.
From the Sidelines
Wins for East Haven this year came against Guilford (29-21), Hamden (34-31 in four overtimes), Law (17-6), Lyman Hall (35-0), Sheehan (39-0), North Branford (37-13), and CREC Co-op (42-6).
Loses for East Haven this season were against North Haven (47-0), Foran (41-17), and Branford (10-7).