Below are the official 2022 Hockomock League Football All Stars, selected by the coaches in the league.
Kelley-Rex Division MVP
Luke Davis, Franklin
Kelley-Rex Division All Stars
Anthony Salivati, Attleboro
Luke Davis, Franklin
Emmett Lackey, Franklin
Jase Lyons, Franklin
Devine Johnson, Franklin
Chris Sesay, King Philip
Will Astorino, King Philip
Matt Kelley, King Philip
Kyle Abbott, King Philip
Mason Baldic, Milford
Romeo Holland, Milford
Evan Cornelius, Milford
Zachary Gallagher, North Attleboro
Greg Berthiueme, North Attleboro
Nate Shultz, North Attleboro
Ryan MacDougall, Taunton
Malachi Johnson, Taunton
Jose Touron, Taunton
Davenport Division MVP
Conner Zukowski, Mansfield
Davenport Division All Stars
Lincoln Moore, Foxboro
Brandon Mazenkas-O’Grady, Foxboro
Sam Carpenter, Foxboro
Andrew Finn, Foxboro
Hayden Rose, Canton
Owen Lane, Canton
Conner Zukowski, Mansfield
Jephte Jean, Mansfield
Colton Johnson, Mansfield
Trevor Foley, Mansfield
Kyle Murphy, Mansfield
Ryan DeGirolamo, Mansfield
Charles Bell, Mansfield
Jaden Hinton, Oliver Ames
Chad Silva, Oliver Ames
Thomas Laz, Stoughton
Tagh Swierzewski, Stoughton
Jarred Daughtry, Stoughton
Honorable Mentions
Ayden Ramirez, Attleboro
Josh Richards, Canton
Austin Philbin, Foxboro
Nick Quintina, Franklin
Nate Kearney, King Philip
Rocco Scarpellini, Mansfield
Ryan O’Connor, Milford
Jack Munley, North Attleboro
John Carey, Oliver Ames
Elijah Thomas, Stoughton
Jacob Leonard, Taunton
Below are the official 2022 Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league. Below are the official Hockomock League Football All Stars and honorable mentions, selected by the coaches in the league.
Mansfield junior Tommy Smith breaks free for an 80-yard touchdown in the second quarter against Foxboro. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)
FOXBORO, Mass. – A balanced attack on offense and a dominant effort defensively turned out to be the perfect recipe for Mansfield on Thanksgiving Day.
Buoyed by five different touchdown scorers, Mansfield clinched the Davenport division title with a convincing 33-0 win over rival Foxboro, also notching its first shutout on Thanksgiving since 2009.
“We had a heck of a year winning the division and winning nine games,” said Mansfield head coach Mike Redding. “I think both teams have a lot to be proud of. And both teams have a lot of good players back and it will be fun next year for sure.
“I thought we had good balance. Just everything went our way in the first half…this was a great way to wrap it up against a good Foxboro team, and to play dominate. Especially coming off a tough playoff loss, this flips this season. Finishing at 9-2 is a lot better than 8-3 and losing your last two. We had two weeks to get ready, we worked hard on the field and in the weight room, just a great effort by our seniors.”
Senior linebacker Kyle Murphy was named the Don Currivan MVP for the Hornets while senior captain Jephte Jean earned the Matt McCue Lineman of the Game for Mansfield. Foxboro’s Lincoln Moore (Vin Igo MVP) and Andrew Finn (Jeff Parker Lineman of the Game) earned the honors for the Warriors.
“I’ve been playing with these kids since second grade, and we’ve worked year in and year out, and it’s a brotherhood really,” said Murphy, who missed last season recovering from an injury. “It means a lot for it to end in a satisfying way. We won’t get this chance to play together again but I’m grateful to share the field with these boys one last time.
“We were physical and we had a lot of energy. I think we wanted it more than them on every single play, it meant more to us.”
“He’s a great story,” Redding said of Murphy. “He didn’t play varsity last year coming off a knee injury. He had a phenomenal year on defense for us and I’m so happy for him to get the MVP today because he worked so hard to get back on the year.
“He came in this year like a man possessed. He was one of our best defensive players and played great football for us.”
Mansfield took control in the first quarter and never surrendered it the rest of the way. On the first series of the game, the Hornets only needed four plays before finding the end zone. Junior backup quarterback Connor Curtis came in after three plays, and although he’s been called on mostly to run with the ball, he slung a deep pass down the middle. Foxboro’s defensive backs were able to get their hands up, but the ball bounced back in the air and junior receiver Trevor Foley hauled it in with one hand and went the distance for a 47-yard touchdown. Travis Hennessy’s point after put Mansfield ahead 7-0 just over two minutes into the game.
Foxboro looked to mount a response with a lengthy drive and marched into Hornet territory. But on the 11th play of the drive, Mansfield junior Brandon Jackman read the play and jumped on a short pass, and took it to the house for a 77-yard interception return with 3:15 left in the opening quarter.
Mansfield’s defense delivered again, forcing a quick three and out. The offense was quick to reward the defense. Junior Tommy Smith, who started the year on JV but was called up due to injury after two weeks, broke free up the left sideline, following a great block from right tackle Jason Riley, who pulled to the left, and Smith raced away for an 80-yard touchdown, boosting Mansfield’s advantage to 20-0 with 40.5 seconds left in the first quarter.
“Things just snowballed early and we took control and made some great plays,” Redding said. “Tommy Smith stepped up big this year and ended up as our leading rusher and one of the best stories of the season.”
Foxboro had its best drive of the game in the second quarter, covering 59 yards on 15 plays to move inside the Mansfield 10-yard line after a 9-yard pass and catch from Mike Marcucella to Tony Sulham.
The Warriors tried to get the run game going with Moore (58 yards on nine carries) and sophomore Ben Angelini, but Mansfield’s front seven controlled the line. Jean and senior Colton Johnson combined for a tackle for a loss on first down, and then Hennessy, Murphy, and Ryan DeGirolamo combined for a third down stop. Foxboro’s 23-yard field goal attempt was just wide with 3:05 left.
“It felt really good to win this game,” Jean said. “We had a tough loss to Milford but we bounced back and it’s great to get a big dub on my final game in the Mansfield jersey.”
That was plenty of time for Mansfield to find the end zone again. Conner Zukowski (11/12, 167 yards) hit Drew Sacco for 15 yards on first down, then linked up with Foley for the first time for 35 yards. Zukowski hooked up with CJ Bell for 14 yards down to the 2-yard line. Despite some big tackles from Moore and junior Brandon Mazenkes-O’Grady on first and second down, Zukowski scrambled just inside the pylon for a 6-yard touchdown with just 17.8 seconds left in the half to make it 26-0.
“They were the better football team, pure and simple,” said Foxboro head coach Jack Martinelli. “They were a lot hungrier than we were. I guess we never really recovered from losing in the playoffs [on Saturday]. Give them all the credit, they executed better. We had some chances to make some plays early on but we didn’t make any plays.”
Both Mansfield and Foxboro entered the game undefeated through three games in the Davenport division, but the Hornets really didn’t have a blemish as they outscored their first three division foes 115-0 — yes, three games and three shutouts.
That trend continued as Mansfield continued the shutout in the second half. Foxboro started the second half with the ball but just two plays in, Bell hauled in an overthrow for an interception to get Mansfield the ball back.
That led to an eight-play, 66-yard drive from the Hornets. It started with a mix of Smith and Sacco, and then a 38-yard pass to Bell moved the sticks. Moore once again had a tackle for loss inside the five for the Foxboro defense, but Sacco plunged in from 2 yards out two plays later for the final score of the game.
“It was an emphasis at halftime that we didn’t want to give up any points,” Redding said. “We don’t really care if we score another point in the second half but let’s play defense. We haven’t gotten a shutout in this game in a long time. I don’t think we were aware of not being scored on in the division but it was more about getting a shutout on Thanksgiving against a really good team.
“Their film in September, they looked young but talented…their film in November, they looked really good,” Redding said of Foxboro. “They have a lot of good pieces, they’re going to be very, very good a year from now. And it’ll be another battle on Thanksgiving. They had a great year, Jack did an unbelievable job after they started 0-3 to turn it around and get to the final four.”
Mansfield football finishes 9-2 overall and 4-0 in the Davenport while Foxboro finishes at 6-6 overall and 3-1 in league action.
North Attleboro senior Greg Berthiaume drags a Mansfield tackler with him for a first half touchdown, one of his two scores in the game. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)
MANSFIELD, Mass. – With under eight seconds remaining in the second quarter of Friday night’s rivalry game at Alumni Field, Mansfield faced a third down from the one-yard-line. The Hornets had traveled 61 yards in 45 seconds, now they just had to punch it in. North Attleboro senior Jack Munley had other ideas and stopped Rocco Scarpellini short of the end zone.
Having started the first overtime period with a touchdown, North’s defense had the chance to repeat its earlier trick, stop the Hornets from the one, and clinch a second consecutive impressive road victory. Mansfield QB Connor Curtis tried to keep it himself, looking for a hole in the middle of the line, but was swallowed up by white shirts.
For the second time in the game, North’s defense made a stand, this time sealing a 27-21 win, avenging last year’s double-overtime defeat to the Hornets at Community Field. It was North’s first win at Mansfield since 2015.
“Whether you get the ball first or second, you’ve got to stop them and it came down to that at the end,” said first-year North coach Mike Strachan. “I’m just really proud of my football team, they fought. To beat Mansfield at Mansfield, with this great team, and this great tradition they have here, I’m really proud of my guys.”
Mansfield coach Mike Redding admitted that he will be second-guessing his call on that final play for a while.
“It’s a heartbreaker,” he explained. “I’ll go over this for 10 years on any call that would’ve worked.
“We’re trying to come up with a little bit of a counter to kind of get them overflowing, get Connor back, he’s great off the fake finding the seam to run. Once we get to the one or two, they’ve just got 11 big, strong bodies up front and we’re young up front and we just can’t quite get movement to punch it in.”
The Hornets started the game on top. Aidan Gleavy made a nice read on a screen pass to force a three-and-out. After Munley sacked Conner Zukowski, Mansfield was able to convert third and long with Zukowski (18-of-28, 300 yards) throwing a 20-yard strike to Trevor Foley (five catches, 134 yards) on the near sideline. CJ Bell followed with a nice grab on the far sideline, hauling in a 29-yard reception.
After Zukowski and Foley combined again for another 17 yards, Scarpellini punched it in from a yard out to make it 7-0.
In the second quarter, Kyle Murphy sacked North quarterback Chase Frisoli to force a punt from the three. Mansfield started at the North 30-yard-line but a holding call stalled the drive. North took over possession and took the momentum.
On third and short from the North 42, Frisoli (12-of-22, 180 yards) looked deep down the sideline to Jovany Rivera (six catches, 123 yards). The 41-yard completion put the Rocketeers in the red zone for the first time. Eight yards and three plays later, facing fourth and two Strachan elected to go for it. Greg Berthiaume wouldn’t be stopped, dragging a would-be tackler with him for a nine-yard, game-tying score.
The North defense followed up that score by forcing a three-and-out. A short punt gifted the visitors the ball at the 26 and North took advantage. A timeout before Austin Clemente attempted a 46-yard field goal led to a change of plan, with North electing to go for it and Frisoli finding Rivera for 21 yards to the eight. On the next snap Berthiaume caught a pass in the flat and dove for the pylon to put Big Red in front.
Mansfield only had 53 seconds on the clock but wasted no time racing up field. Zukowski hit Drew Sacco for 15 yards and Bell for 17. He then fired a 30-yard pass to Foley to get the Hornets down to the two. After a false start, Nolan Bordieri took a sweep for six yards but just short of the end zone. An incompletion and Munley’s big stop, left the Hornets down 14-7 at the break.
Strachan said, “I think we were physical up front. I thought we were very physical and controlled the line of scrimmage.”
North added to its lead on its first possession of the third. Frisoli’s quick release to Rivera down the sideline for 25 yards got them into Mansfield territory and a perfectly executed play action left sophomore Ryan Bannon all alone in the secondary for a 26-yard touchdown.
The Hornets were struggling to get the ground game working but Zukowski was having a lot of success through the air. On the first snap of the next drive, he looked down field for Foley, who made a great adjustment to the flight of the ball and pulled in a 47-yard catch. On the next play, Foley out-jumped the defensive back in the back of the end zone, snatching a 20-yard touchdown.
Down seven in the fourth quarter, Mansfield got the ball back at its own 11. A first down got it out to the 23 and Zukowski again looked down the sideline, this time to Brandon Jackman, who made a great catch for 37 yards. Zukowski appeared to get a cramp at the end of the play and had to come to the sideline. Curtis jumped in and immediately broke away for a 40-yard touchdown run that tied the game with under six minutes remaining.
“We let them go up 14 and then we kind of woke up and started playing clean,” Redding said. “Zuk started throwing the ball well, we spread them out. We really started playing great from when they scored to go up 14 until overtime. We showed a lot of heart.”
North had one more chance to win it in regulation. A 10-play drive to the Mansfield 19 gave Clemente a chance from 36 yards out, but his kick was wide left with just 20 seconds to play.
The visitors had the ball first in OT. On first down, Frisoli flipped a pass over the shoulder of Aidan Conrad in the flat and he walked in with the go-ahead score. Ryan DeGirolamo was in tight coverage to breakup the two-point conversion try, leaving North up six.
Mansfield had four plays to try and tie it. Zukowski looked for Foley on each of the first two plays, with Rivera doing a good job in coverage on the second. On third down, Zukowski hit Sacco in the flat and he showed patience to pick a hole but North converged at the goal line to keep him a yard short.
Curtis came in for the final play, trying to force his way through North’s defensive line, but Zachary Gallagher, Bannon, Berthiaume, and others were on hand to keep the Hornets just short and add another exciting chapter to this historic rivalry.
Final (OT): North Attleboro 27, Mansfield 21, for the second time tonight North is able to stop the Hornets at the one, Rocketeers walk away with the victory #hockomockpic.twitter.com/CNaDkFs9Zf
“We practiced all week in the goal line, what to do, we practiced our new formations, and I really think we just executed it like we’re supposed to,” Berthiaume explained. “When you don’t make mistakes, you win football games.”
Strachan said, “We go to work each week, we talk about that, we say we put the money in the bank and the payout is on Friday nights. This was a big check mark for us and it was a really big test for our team. We’re going to try and enjoy this one, but I’m just really happy with our football team.”
Following a bye week, North Attleboro (2-0) will have its home, and Kelley-Rex, opener when the Rocketeers host currently unbeaten Franklin. Mansfield (1-1) will head out on the road for the first time next Friday, traveling to Worcester to face Doherty.
Former Attleboro Bombardier Kyle Murphy signed with the New York Giants on Saturday as an undrafted free agent. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)
Attleboro graduate Kyle Murphy didn’t hear his name called during the 2020 NFL Draft, but that doesn’t mean the former Bombardier isn’t getting a chance to live out his dreams to play professional football.
Minutes after the seventh and final round concluded on Saturday evening, Murphy announced via his Twitter account that he had signed as an undrafted free agent with the New York Giants.
Murphy shined for four years on the gridiron at Attleboro High, earning Hockomock League All Star honors as both a junior and a senior. He also played basketball at Attleboro High, earning all star honorable mention honors twice. He went on to play football for four years at the University of Rhode Island and was one of three Rams in consideration for this year’s draft along with receivers Isaiah Coulter and Aaron Parker.
Coulter was drafted by the Houston Texas and Parker reportedly signed with the Dallas Cowboys after the draft.
Murphy, a 6’3, 316-pound offensive lineman started at all three positions along the offensive line, including center, during his four-year career with the Rams. As a senior, he was selected as a team captain and was a two-time all-Colonial Athletic Association First Team selection. He was named to four All-America First Teams (Athlon Sports FCS Postseason, STATS FCS, Hero Sports, and Phil Steele FCS) and one All-America second team (Associated Press). He made 10 appearances as a freshman at URI and 11 in each of the past three seasons.
Check out some of Murphy’s highlights from this past season courtesy of ABC6.
Attleboro native/@RhodyFootball All-American OL Kyle Murphy is signing as an undrafted free agent with the New York Giants.
Attleboro High grad Kyle Murphy earned first-team all-conference honors last year and is in the running for All-American honors this season for URI. (URI Athletics)
A couple of seasons ago, the University of Rhode Island football program was an afterthought not only in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), but nationally. When Attleboro High grad Kyle Murphy was a freshman, the Rams finished 2-9 and lost several games by lopsided margins. Murphy’s first collegiate start was against perennial power James Madison. The Rams lost 84-7.
But over the past three years, URI has become a program on the rise. The Rams went 6-5 last season and enter 2019 eyeing an elusive playoff spot and expecting to challenge for a CAA title. It has been quite a turnaround.
“Just looking back when my 2020 class came in, we really set the foundation and we’ve all matured, and we’ve all grown so much and it’s nice to see how much hard work can turn a program around,” said Murphy. “It even made us closer, telling each other how far we’ve come and how far we can go not only as players but as people.”
Murphy has also come a long way from his debut three years ago. He has developed into one of the top offensive linemen not only in the CAA but also in the country. He started 10 games at left tackle last season (and one at center to fill in for an injury) earning first team All-CAA honors. With Murphy leading the line, the Rams rushed for more than 120 yards per game, their highest total in six seasons, and scored 15 rushing touchdowns, which was the highest in 11 years.
Ahead of the new season, the 6-foot-4, 302-pound tackle was named to several preseason All-American teams. Pro scouts are now being spotted at the new Meade Stadium turf and at preseason camps and workouts looking at URI players.
“They’ve seen the strides we’ve made and they know we have the talent here,” Murphy said. “It’s exciting to see how far we’ve come and how much attention we’ve drawn.”
Murphy was a standout at Attleboro, earning 2013 HockomockSports.com Underclassman of the Year honors and being named to this site’s awards as a defensive lineman in 2014 and an offensive lineman in 2015. When he made the decision to go to URI, Murphy decided to focus on the offensive side of the ball.
He explained, “I started to grow such a passion for playing offensive line. It’s a different kind of bond you have with the five guys you’re playing with. I love coming in everyday, playing with the guys, and just competing with each other.”
Of course, the leap from high school to college was a challenge. No longer was Murphy the biggest guy on the field and he had to match the speed of the game and of the players that he was trying to keep out of the backfield. To meet the demands of the collegiate level, Murphy focused on his technique.
He progressed from a raw talent into a regular starter at multiple positions across the line. He started all 11 games as a sophomore, six at left guard and five at right tackle. By his junior season, he was the team’s starting left tackle.
“Everybody’s going to be as strong as you or as fast as you and you really need to rely on your techniques when it’s crunch time in a game or when you’re going up against someone that’s bigger or stronger than you,” he said. “If you have better technique, that beats anything all day.”
These are lessons that were ingrained in Murphy during his time at Attleboro. Working under the Bombardiers line coach Chris Burns, who played four years at Northeastern University, Murphy knew what he was prepared for the challenges he would face at URI.
“He taught me how to be a physical player, how to guide the guys around me, and all the coaches in high school taught me how to have good character and how to have a mentality to never quit,” Murphy reflected.
The hard work continues to pay off. Although the Rams started the season with a pair of losses, at Ohio and in triple overtime to Delaware, there is a new confidence in the program and high expectations for the season. The ultimate goal is to get into the postseason picture, bringing even more recognition and attention to the program.
“We just need to build on finishing game and the little things like mental errors and getting stupid penalties, but we’re looking good,” Murphy said. “It’s only the little things that we need to critique. Our structure and everything is looking solid.”
Being named to the all-conference team, being on the New England Football Writer’s Association All-New England team, and having national publications put him on preseason All-American lists has not diminished Murphy’s desire to improve.
“It was just a wake up call for me that I had the potential to be one of the best in the conference and even one of the best in the nation,” he said. “It gave me a lot of confidence but also gave me more motivation to keep striving for more and more and set my goals even higher.
“I’m a humble guy and I’m hard on myself, but this year I set my goals even higher because I know I can reach them.”
As a team captain and as the senior leader of the offensive line group, Murphy is spreading that message to all his teammates this season. Never a very vocal leader, Murphy is trying to set the example with his effort and desire for improvement because he knows that can be contagious.
While his focus remains on this season and finishing his collegiate career on a high, the possibility of being able to extend his football career beyond college is impossible to ignore. It has been a long journey from the Pop Warner fields in Attleboro.
“I remember just wanting to play football for the fun of it and then realizing that I maybe had the chance to get a scholarship and play in college,” Murphy said. “It does hit me sometimes to see how far I’ve come and see how much more I can do.
“Honestly, it’s shocking sometimes to realize how I never even thought about playing at the next level but these last couple years have changed my mind about everything. It’s exciting to see what the future ahead of me holds.”
It was recently announced that five Hockomock football players have been selected by the Massachusetts High School Football Coaches Association to take part in the annual Shriners All-Star Classic on Saturday, June 18 at Cawley Stadium in Lowell.
The five players are Nick Morrison of North Attleboro, Kyle Murphy of Attleboro, Jake Ragusa of Canton, Austin Ryan of Foxboro, and Josh Schafer of Mansfield.
The annual all-star game pits graduating high school seniors from teams in the North and the South and raises money for the Shriner’s Hospital in Boston. Through the years, the MHSFCA has donated more than $1 million through its all-star game.
The players were nominated by their coaches and then selected by the coaching staffs that were elected by the MHSFCA to run the game. The South team will be coached by Northbridge head coach Ken LaChapelle, who also coached the team in 1999.
North Attleboro coach Don Johnson said of Morrison, who was named the Kelley-Rex MVP and is planning on raising $2,000 for the Shriners, “Nick Mo had a great senior year for us and was a big part of our championship season. He is the next in line in a long list of Red Rocketeers that have played in the Shriners game…I’m sure there will be a nice contingent of family, friends and teammates who will make the trek to cheer him on.”
Johnson knows all about the Shriners All-Star Classic, as he and Mansfield coach Mike Redding both represented North Attleboro in the first game in 1979, which was held at Boston College.
Redding said of Schafer, “Josh was one of our most dedicated players and a great leader for our team. He improved so much over the course of the last four years and being selected for the Shriner’s is a great reward for his commitment and his great play over the last two years for us.”
Redding added that Schafer was selected for the National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete award, which recognized his work on the field, in the classroom, and for his community service. Schafer will be joined at the may banquet by Foxboro senior Connor Downs.
Foxboro coach Jack Martinelli praised Ryan for joining the “long line” of Warriors who will play in the Shriners’ game. He added, “he will proudly represent, not only his outstanding skills and gamemanship, but also, his tight-knit fellow Foxboro teammates and the Hockomock League. Austin takes great pride in playing for such a wonderful cause…We are so very proud of him as a student/athlete, but most importantly, as a caring young man.”
Murphy was a three-year starter and a two-year captain for the Bombardiers and Attleboro coach Mike Strachan credited the senior lineman’s work in the off-season and in the weight room for getting him to this point.
Strachan said, “Kyle is truly a gifted athlete and even a better person. Kyle has been a solid leader for us on and off the field the last two years and his leadership will be missed.
Ragusa, a three-year player for Canton, was named the Davenport MVP and the HockomockSports.com Player of the Year for the Bulldogs this past fall and now can add the Shriners’ game to those honors. He will also be continuing a program and a family legacy when he takes the field in June.
Ragusa’s father Doug also played in the Shriners’ game in 1986.
Canton coach Dave Bohane said of Ragusa, “Jake made big plays at big moments for us this season…He is probably our most decorated player with the various awards he has picked up, which include the Hockomock Davenport MVP, as well as being named to the [MHSFCA] Super 26 Team.”
Below are the official Hockomock League Boys Basketball All Stars, selected by the coaches in the league.
Hockomock League MVP
Tim Prunier, Franklin
Hockomock League All Stars
Jake Dunkley, Attleboro
Alex DuBrow, Foxboro
Rob Lowey, Foxboro
Jason Procaccini, Foxboro
Tim Prunier, Franklin
Connor Peterson, Franklin
Jay Dieterle, Franklin
Samuel Goldberg, Mansfield
Matthew Ehrlich, Mansfield
Dimitry Torres, Milford
Brent Doherty, North Attleboro
Carter Evin, Oliver Ames
Matt Lowerre, Sharon
Brandon Teixeira, Stoughton
Jose Mercado, Taunton
Tommy MacLean, Taunton
Honorable Mentions
Kyle Murphy, Attleboro
Devin Foster, Canton
Jonathan Carnino, Foxboro
Kevin Gill, Franklin
Will Weir, King Philip
Max Boen, Mansfield
Dwight Anderson, Milford
Jonny Friberg, North Attleboro
Tim Kelley, Oliver Ames
Ricardo Ripley, Sharon
Cameron Andrews, Stoughton
Quan Roberson, Taunton
Attleboro junior Jake Dunkley (19 points) drives past a defender in the first half. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)
ATTLEBORO, Mass. – Five Attleboro players scored in double digits, each contributing in a big way at various points of the game and the Bombardiers closed the season with a 75-67 win over playoff bound Durfee squad.
Junior Jake Dunkley scored a game-high 19 points and pulled in nine rebounds, junior Andrew Milliken added 16 points, sophomore Nate Douglas chipped in with 12 points, senior Brent Cook had 10 points and six rebounds and junior Berlyns Abraham scored 10 points and finished with seven rebounds.
Milliken got Attleboro started early, going a perfect 4/4 from three point range in the first half. The juniors sharp shooting helped Attleboro to a 21-19 lead after one and kept the Bombardiers in the game as they trailed by one (37-36) at halftime.
Douglas scored seven of his 12 points in the final frame, none bigger than his basket with just under a minute to play. The Bombardiers held a 70-65 lead but were forced to call a timeout with 10 seconds left on the shot clock after the original play fizzled. Douglas took possession out of the timeout, raced around his man and hit a layup just before the shot clock expired to put Attleboro up 72-65.
Cook scored the game’s first four points and added another key three in the third quarter, helping Attleboro take a 54-52 lead into the final frame. When the Hilltoppers pulled within two points early in the fourth quarter, Cook drained his third three of the game to reestablish a two possession lead for Attleboro — one they relinquish for the rest of the way.
“Brent Cook, in his last game, really played well both offensively and defensively,” Attleboro head coach Mark Houle said. “He made some big plays for us. He’s been that kind of player for us throughout the course of the year where he’s come off the bench and given us some energy. I was proud to see him and all of the seniors go out winners tonight.
Abraham was a huge spark plug in the second half for Attleboro. He came off the bench to net a pair of putbacks in the third quarter and hauled in six rebounds in just six minutes of play. He then added six more points in the final quarter, including an elbow jumper that put the Bombardiers up seven with just under three minutes to play.
And Dunkley got it done in all four quarters. He scored five in the first, four in the second, seven in the third and then drained a three on the possession after Cook’s trey that capped a 10-4 run to open the final quarter.
“It was important for us to come out and play hard,” Mark Houle said. “I think early on offensively we did well but we didn’t do a nice job on the boards in the first half. In the beginning of the second half I think we started to get a little better at it with some more effort.
“Berlyns Abraham came off the bench early in the third quarter and gave us a ton of energy. I think he had six rebounds in the third alone and he kind of set the tone on the boards and that we weren’t going to give up second chance points. That got us to the point where we got the lead and we were able to hit shots and make good decisions. Different guys stepped up today for us, we worked hard. At halftime we said the team that wants to play more defense is going to win and that ended up being us.”
While Attleboro shot similar percentages from the floor in both halves (36% in the first, 38% in the second), the Bombardiers dominated the rebounding battle in the second half. After a seven rebound advantage at half (23-16), Attleboro finished with a 49-29 edge on the glass.
The Bombardiers hit 15 two point field goals, connected on 10 three pointers and hit 15 free throws. Eight different players scored for Attleboro.
“We found different ways to score,” Houle said. “We felt like we were getting better towards the end of the year. We left a lot of games on the table early on but I’m proud to see us keep working hard and play well against quality teams and beat quality teams.”
Attleboro’s start to the final quarter created the initial separation. Up by two to start, Abraham took a feed from Lucas Boucicaut and after a stop on the other end, Milliken drained a pair of free throws. Durfee responded with a pair of baskets but consecutive threes from Cook and Dunkley kept the hosts ahead.
Over the final two minutes – in a five point game – Attleboro outscored Durfee 9-5 to close the game.
“The last couple minutes of the game are pivotal,” Houle said. “You have to be able to defend and rebound but you have to also know the time and the score and be able to put a team away. It’s a confidence thing and we felt confident at the end, I’m happy to be standing here saying we got the win.”
Attleboro boys basketball closes the season at 7-15 and will lose five seniors to graduation: Brent Cook, Kevin Aguirre, Prowo Kinkoue-Poufong, Max Bohannon and Kyle Murphy (five points and 12 rebounds against Durfee). Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at RyanLanigan@hockomocksports.com and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.
Today’s games are listed below. Boys Basketball
Attleboro, 75 vs. Durfee, 67 – Final – Junior Jake Dunkley scored a game-high 19 points and pulled in nine rebounds, junior Andrew Milliken added 16 points, sophomore Nate Douglas chipped in with 12 points, senior Brent Cook had 10 points and six rebounds, junior Berlyns Abraham scored 10 points and finished with seven rebounds and senior Kyle Murphy had five points and 12 rebounds.
Franklin, 70 @ South High, 41 – Final
Mansfield, 58 vs. BC High, 44 – Final – Mansfield raced out to a 15-4 lead after the first quarter and never looked back. Matt Ehrlich had a team-high 16 points, Max Boen scored 13 points and Sam Goldberg had nine points and nine rebounds. Girls Basketball
Attleboro, 55 @ Durfee, 38 – Final – Sarah Deyo led all scorers with 16 points for the Bombardiers, while Emily Houle added 13 and with a first quarter layup became the fifth Attleboro girls’ basketball player (and first since 1999) to reach the 1,000-point plateau. The Bombardiers closed with a 22-7 run after Durfee cut the lead to just two at 33-31 in the third quarter.
Foxboro, 53 vs. Bridgewater-Raynham, 41 – Final – Ashley Sampson led the way with 12 points while Kristen Bortolotti added 11 points for the Warriors.
King Philip @ Lowell, 7:00 Hockey
Mansfield, 2 @ Winthrop, 4 – Final
North Attleboro, 4 @ Wayland, 0 – Final
King Philip, 3 @ Bridgwater-Raynham, 5 – Final Girls Hockey
King Philip, 3 vs. Norwell, 2 – Final
Attleboro junior Jake Dunkley (11) led all scorers with 32 points but it was not enough to beat Feehan on Wednesday night. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)
ATTLEBORO, Mass. – There were two technicals, a ton of calls that were argued by both sides, four ties and five lead changes in the fourth quarter alone, battles in the post and on the perimeter and a game that was only decided in the final 13 seconds.
Basically, it was a typical night in the Attleboro – Bishop Feehan boys’ basketball rivalry.
Jake Dunkley scored 32 points to lead three Bombardiers in double digits and Attleboro rallied from as many as nine points down in the second half to take a lead in the final minutes, but Feehan rolled off the final eight points of the game to pull out a 79-74 victory in the latest meeting between crosstown rivals.
“Especially when you’re playing against our rival, no matter what the records are, it’s going to be a good game,” said Attleboro coach Mark Houle. “I told our kids coming that you’re going to be in it, we just have to grind and work hard.”
“We made some plays down the stretch to give us the lead and I thought we had enough in us, but it ended up not being enough.”
Feehan looked like it was pulling away as halftime approached. Dunkley knocked down a pair of free throws that made it 39-30 as the teams headed into the locker rooms, but it was the home team that had the momentum after a 22-point second quarter.
The Bombardiers came out of halftime with renewed energy and were sparked by Dunkley, who got a steal on Feehan’s first possession and raced down for a layup, then knocked down a jumper to cut the lead to five.
Brent Cook stepped off the Attleboro bench and scored five of his seven points in the third, including a clutch three just after a Peter Luongo, Jr. putback had given Feehan its largest lead at 54-42. Kyle Murphy, who finished with a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds, completed a three-point play and Andrew Milliken (11 points) hit a jumper to make the score 55-50 heading to the fourth.
Milliken knocked down even bigger shots in the final quarter, as his two corner threes got Attleboro back level at 57-57. Dunkley stepped into a three-pointer of his own a few minutes later to tie the game again at 64-64 then added a spinning layup that put Attleboro up one, it’s first lead since the start of the second quarter.
“He’s developed into a very confident player,” said Houle of Dunkley, “and I think he’s better offensively and defensively. We have confidence in him that when it leaves his hand it’s going in and I think he’s going to continue to get better.”
Feehan continued to come back and take the lead thanks in large part to senior guard Mike Nelson, show led the Shamrocks with 25 points. Nelson continually took the ball to the basket and frequently ended up at the line. In fact, 15 of his 25 points came from free throws, including seven of his 13 fourth quarter points.
Nelson did make one bad judgement play in the fourth when he bounced the ball in the direction of the official and was called for a technical when it bounced off the back of the ref’s leg. Dunkley sank both free throws and then on the ensuing possession pulled up from the line and banked in a shot over the arms of a Feehan defender.
Houle said, “That first half looked like it was getting out of hand a little bit, but in the end we were right in it. It would’ve been a nice way to…our kids have continued to work hard and it would’ve been a feather in their cap to beat a good team.”
Attleboro had a 74-71 lead but could not grab the rebounds down the stretch it need to put away the game. Several times, Nelson took a shot but the long rebound would somehow end up back in his hands or those of senior Nick Botelho (18 points). On one of those rebounds, Nelson scored to tie the game 74-74 and then on the next trip Botelho got fouled and hit one of two to regain the lead.
“That’s about finishing plays,” Houle explained. “There were a couple of those [bad bounces] but a couple where if we had boxed out then we would have got the rebound.”
The Bombardiers had their chances, but Dunkley was called for traveling on one drive and then down by three, after two more Nelson free throws, he missed two chances at the rim and Botelho grabbed the decisive rebound with a second remaining.
It felt like a missed opportunity to grab another marquee win in the final few games of the season.
“It was almost a complete package for us tonight,” said Houle.
He added, “Being in this atmosphere is good for us and we have to continue to learn and grow to compete against and beat good teams.”
Attleboro (6-14, 5-10) played spoiler last week when it beat Taunton and could potentially play a role in the league title race on Monday when the Bombardiers host Mansfield, which is tied for the Kelley-Rex lead.
Josh Perry can be contacted at JoshPerry@hockomocksports.com and followed on Twitter at @Josh_Perry10.
