Pilgrim rolls over Blue Wave, guarantees at least .500 finish

Matt Metcalf, Assistant Sports Editor
Posted 11/11/14

The Pilgrim High School football team kept its home unbeaten streak alive on Friday night, beating Hope High School 52-0, to move to 4-0 on its home turf.

Junior running back Owen Kelly dominated …

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Pilgrim rolls over Blue Wave, guarantees at least .500 finish

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The Pilgrim High School football team kept its home unbeaten streak alive on Friday night, beating Hope High School 52-0, to move to 4-0 on its home turf.

Junior running back Owen Kelly dominated the Blue Wave on the ground, single-handedly accounting for 30 of the Patriots’ 52 points, on four touchdowns and three two-point conversions. Kelly compiled 183 rushing yards and also caught a pass for 10 yards.

The Pats, as a whole, improved to 4-3 in Division III.

Kelly has been a menace out of the backfield over the last two weeks, scoring six touchdowns and amassing 367 yards from scrimmage.

“He’s a beast,” said Pilgrim head coach Tom O’Connor. “Every week he’s getting better and he’s getting healthier every week. He’s going to be scary when he’s 100 percent.”

A gutsy call proved to be beneficial early in the game for the Patriots. On Pilgrim’s first offensive drive, O’Connor decided to go for it on fourth-and-6 from around midfield. Kelly picked up the first down with an 11-yard run and capped off the drive a few minutes later on a five-yard run into the end zone. Kelly then plunged into the end zone on the two-point conversion to give Pilgrim an 8-0 lead.

“Our call to go for it spoke to the conditions,” O’Connor said. “The wind was blowing really hard. Punting into the wind, you’re only going to get 20 or 25 yards. So we decided to roll the dice on it.”

Kelly continued to haunt the Blue Wave, recovering a fumble on defense with 2:54 remaining in the first quarter, giving the Patriots great field position at Hope’s 35-yard line.

Three plays later, Kelly broke free for a 30-yard score on third down to extend Pilgrim’s lead to 14-0 with just 11 seconds to go in the opening quarter.

Pilgrim added three more scores in the second quarter to break the game wide open. Kelly added his third straight touchdown on a 24-yard run and Sean Cooney pounded his way into the end zone from four yards out, before senior quarterback Rob Quaine connected with Roger Anyango for an 18-yard touchdown. Kelly’s two-point conversion increased Pilgrim’s lead to 38-0 with 45 seconds remaining in the first half.

While the Patriots’ offense rolled along, so did Pilgrim’s defense. Hope mustered only 89 total yards of offense – 33 rushing and 56 through the air. Pilgrim also forced and recovered three fumbles in the lopsided victory.

“The kids came ready to play,” O’Connor said. “Offensively, we scored on every series but one. Defensively, we were a little shaky at the beginning, but we fixed little tweaks here and there and played a really good game. They have some serious injuries, but they’re a good team that has the potential to break one at any time. We were very happy with the performance.”

Kelly’s fourth touchdown of the game late in the third quarter inflated Pilgrim’s lead to 46-0, after Quaine plowed over a Blue Wave defender to earn a two-point conversion.

Jadin Genao would add another Patriots’ score in the fourth quarter on a seven-yard run to close the scoring.

Unfortunately for the Patriots, it looks like they will be on the outside looking in when playoff time rolls around. Wins by East Greenwich and Lincoln on Friday secured the four playoff teams for Division III. Despite having the opportunity to conclude league play with a 5-3 record, the Patriots have secured fifth place, meaning they’ll just miss the postseason with the Rhode Island Interscholastic League playoff format that only includes the top four teams from each division.

Nevertheless, the Patriots have done their part. They have put themselves in a position to finish league play with a winning record for the first time since 2004.

Pilgrim will host East Greenwich at 7 p.m. on Friday, before taking on Warwick Vets on Thanksgiving. Both games will be played at Pilgrim, where the Patriots have outscored opponents 114-30 this season.

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