Under the Friday night lights on September 12, the Scituate High School Sailors football team traveled to Duxbury to clash against the Dragons. This game was the rivalry game of the week, a rematch of last year’s Division 4 Super Bowl, and a game that has been “circled on Duxbury’s calendar for a while now,” according to a Duxbury player.
The game did not disappoint, with Scituate winning 27-15 in a very action-packed game. Major contributions came from junior running back Grayson Foley, senior captain and quarterback Jonny Donovan, and senior cornerback James Trombly.
Foley had two rushing touchdowns, adding to his team-leading total. Donovan completed 13/18 passes for 152 yards and also added a rushing touchdown. As for Trombly, he had a first-quarter pick-six—his 2nd interception of the season—while also adding seven tackles.
This heated rivalry began showing its true colors in the first quarter alone, as there were three personal fouls, but at the end of the quarter, the only scoring was Trombly’s pick-six that put the Sailors up 6-0.
During the second quarter, Donovan ran in a touchdown from four yards out to put the Sailors up 12-0, with still no response from the Dragons. At the half, the score was 12-0.
After the half, the Duxbury offense sprang to life, as senior quarterback Brady Rhinesmith rushed one yard to get into the endzone for a touchdown. Senior kicker Gavin Hammond added the extra point, making it 12-7 Sailors. Scituate fought back, as Foley ran it 27 yards to the house. He also added a two-point conversion on a short pass by Donovan to extend the Sailors’ lead to 20-7.
During the fourth quarter, Foley added his second rushing touchdown of the game from three yards out. Sophomore kicker Tyler Stelljes added the PAT to make it 27-15, putting the dagger into the Dragons’ heart.
Rhinesmith added another touchdown pass and two-point conversion to make the score 27-15, but it was too late as the game was already out of reach.
The Sailors moved to 2-0 on the year, while the Dragons have fallen to 1-1. Postgame, Foley talked about what led him to success in this game, stating, “The team really came together, and a bunch of guys stepped up to help win this game against a great team. All of our team camaraderie also definitely helped us come together to win.”
The Sailors’ next game will be at home on Friday, September 16, against the Norwell Clippers. Foley also had some words about preparation for the Clippers: “We’re going to keep getting better every day and work hard as Norwell is a good team.”
The Sailors’ head coach, Herb Devine, also commented on the win, saying, “We are going to enjoy the win this weekend and get on the Norwell train by Saturday or Sunday.”