WEST CANAAN — With his team trailing 16-0 to Mascoma in the second quarter of Saturday’s NHIAA Division IV football semifinal, Raymond coach Tona McCarthy abruptly called an end to the game.
The decision sends the defending state champion and No. 2-seeded Mascoma Royals to Saturday’s championship game against top-seeded Hillsboro-Deering, winners of the other semifinal contest, 35-14. over Farmington-Nute.
After the game, as the Rams gathered their equipment, McCarthy hugged his players.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” McCarthy said when asked about his decision to forfeit the contest.
Mascoma coach John Daley met with McCarthy and officials on the field moments before the game was called.
“He said they don’t have any guys left. They are all hurt,” Daley said.
Before the game ended, Mascoma had dominated both sides of the ball, and it appeared the Royals would be able to score much more if the game continued.
The Rams, who saw three players injured, though they were able to walk off the field, and had a fourth ejected after a penalty, were clearly over-matched by the bigger and faster Royals.
Mascoma defeated Raymond in last year’s Division IV championship game, 45-0, and again in the first game of the season, 38-8.
Other than a lost fumble on the second play of the game from scrimmage, the Royals moved the football at will. The defense stopped the Rams on three downs after the fumble.
Starting from its own 12-yard line after a Raymond punt, the Royals went 70 yards on nine plays, including two big runs by Declan Lyons and one by Paxten Roberts. But they failed to convert a first down on fourth-and-6 from the 15, giving the ball back to Raymond.
The Royals’ defense pushed the Rams back to the 3 and then, on third down, the ball went out of the end zone on a bad snap, giving Mascoma a safety and 2-0 lead with less than four minutes left in the first quarter.
Mascoma was on the march again after the free kick.
Roberts caught a short pass and bulled his way to the 29-yard line for a 20-yard gain. Two plays later, Lyons ran around the left side and into the end zone for a 23-yard score. The two-point conversion was good, making it 10-0.
Raymond was again stymied on its next possession. On the day, the Rams had no first downs and negative yardage on the ground in three possessions.
Mascoma pushed the Rams back on their next possession, forcing a punt on fourth-and-19 to start the second quarter.
Mascoma started on the Raymond 45 and on a third-down misdirection play, Roberts ran untouched down the right side for a 43-yard score. The game was called on Raymond’s second play from scrimmage after the kickoff.
Daley said he was pleased with what he saw from his team as it has shown week to week improvement going back to last year.
“We know what our opponent today runs, and we prepared for it,” Daley said. “We had a really good half of football and executed everything the way it was designed. I am happy with the boys. They played well and were well-disciplined and are playing hard-hitting football.”
In their meeting earlier this year, Hillsboro-Deering defeated Mascoma, 26-14, on Sept. 27. The title game is Saturday in Laconia at 1 p.m.
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com