Feehan picks good times to respond
ATTLEBORO - Bishop Feehan beat North Attleboro in the trenches and on the scoreboard yesterday, defeating its rival from a neighboring town, 13-9.
The Shamrock defense took center stage in the game, subduing North Attleboro's spread attack. Bishop Feehan held the Red Rocketeers to 94 yards on the ground and 116 through the air. The Shamrock defensive backs had a field day, intercepting four passes and giving their offense prime field position from which it was unable to capitalize.
"We self-destructed a number of times, but our defense did a tremendous job the whole game," said Bishop Feehan coach Tony Wood. "If we converted on some of those turnovers, we wouldn't have been fighting for our lives."
Defensive end Joe Knaub sniffed out a screen and picked off Steve Rollins's pass for the first interception of the game. The Shamrocks drove inside the North Attleboro 10 but a false start penalty moved the ball back and Matt Boulter missed a 28-yard field goal.
North Attleboro took a lead on the first play of the second half. Joe Kummer hit a wide open Danny Lang for a 75-yard touchdown strike that put the Red Rocketeers up, 6-0.
Bishop Feehan quickly responded. On the ensuing drive, the Shamrocks marched 80 yards in nearly four minutes, highlighted by a third-and-9 pass from Tommy Romero that bounced off a North Attleboro defender and into the hands of Brian Gallagher for a 34-yard gain. Bryan Webb capped the drive with a 5-yard run, and Boulter's kick put the Shamrocks on top, 7-6.
North Attleboro took a 9-7 lead early in the fourth quarter when Corey Wynn booted a 22-yard field goal. But Bishop Feehan again came right back on the next drive. From the North Attleboro 23, Romero found Boulter on a deep out and Boulter did the rest, diving into the end zone to put Feehan on top for good.
"Romero is only in his second game as a starter," said Wood. "He made some good decisions out there. Boulter also played a phenomenal game."
Bishop Feehan stopped Kummer on fourth down in Bishop Feehan territory with 1:41 remaining to seal the game.
North Attleboro's defense was as impressive as Feehan's. The Red Rocketeers held the Shamrocks to 137 yards on 43 carries. They frequently pressured Romero and sacked him three times.
"North Attleboro gave us a hard time," said Wood. "They got good pressure on our offense and played a good game. We just hung in there."
The victory was the Shamrocks' third straight over Hockomock League teams. It beat Mansfield in last year's Division 2 semifinal and Foxboro last weekend. Feehan (2-0) plays at Hingham Saturday. 