Head coach Kerry Delaney spent the past week preparing for an undefeated Marshfield team and that preparation paid off as the Silver Bullets beat the Rams 6-0 in a hard fought battle for the division one title.
Barnstable only needed their first drive to secure victory after the defense forced Marshfield to turn the ball over on downs. Marshfield received the opening kick and thanks to outstanding plays by Kevin Hardy (1), Andrew Ellis (77), Bryan Hardy (88) and Jake Kipnes (22), the Rams went four and out handing the ball over to Barnstable. Terrance Mudie (44) took only four straight runs to move the ball 54 yards to the Marshfield two yard line, and as the defense keyed on him, Ellis broke through the line on first and goal, spun around protecting the ball and landed into the end zone. Quarterback Hayden Murphy (12) kept the ball on a sweep for the two point conversion but was taken down a yard short.
Marshfield was determined to stay in step with the Bullets but soon learned how strong Barnstable's defense was as Ryan Litchman (64) held up the Rams Kevin O' Donnell (28) while a host of Bullets finished him off. Kipnes, Tedora France (23) and Kevin Hardy provided great coverage in the secondary as Quarterback Jesse Whitaker (25) unsuccessfully tried to find an open receiver on second and third down. Marshfield's punt glanced off the back of one of their own lineman and landed on the Rams 42 yard line. Marshfield's defense adjusted and held the Bullets and Mudie from getting into the end zone again but only because a halfback pass thrown by Terrance couldn’t be reeled in as Ellis slowed for a moment and looked back.
Marshfield began a drive that ate up most of the second quarter, they mixed things up to test Barnstable's defense but the bullets showed they could adjust as well. Marshfield was allowed 4 first downs and moved the ball upfield, but Whitaker threw a screen pass and Ryan Litchman read the play perfectly, stepping in front of the intended receiver and picking off the pass.
The Bullets took over with little time left in the half and Mudie immediately ran or a first down. Coach Delaney played conservatively and kept the running game going, eating up time. There were 18 seconds left on the clock when Hayden Murphy scrambled towards, but just short of a first down giving the Rams possession with decent field position. Marshfield's Whitaker threw a pass that could have meant a touchdown but France got a hand on it and knocked it away as time expired in the half.
Connor Jones (21) fielded the kick off to begin the second half, running six yards upfield towards midfield. Murphy handed off to Mudie for a couple, then on second down Murphy pitched to Mudie who threw twelve yards downfield to Ellis for a first down and the Bullets seemed to be heading for a scoring drive to open this half as they had done to start the game. Two plays later Ellis was brought down after a gain and the ball came loose, it clearly looked as though he was already down but the officials called it a fumble and gave Marshfield renewed hope. Bryan Hardy, Mudie and France dashed those hopes and forced the Rams to turn the ball over on downs after four plays and a Marshfield holding penalty. Barnstable had good field position in Marshfield territory but the Ram defense was tough, stopping Mudie on three consecutive downs, Coach Delaney elected to improve his field position, sending in Kadeem Bailey (25) for a short punt near the 20.
The Rams handed off to Kevin O'Donnell on first and second down and both times Ryan Litchman was there, stopping O'Donnell in his tracks. Marshfield did get a first down and ran a sweep to the right, France broke through the line causing Marshfield to lose a yard on first down. On third down Whitaker faked a pass and ran a sweep gaining five yards but no more as France and Kipnes came up with a big stop. The Rams went for it on fourth down and Jason Frieh (57) tackled O'Donnell forcing him to fumble just short of the first down marker and Barnstable took over with a little less than ten minutes remaining.
Kevin Hardy ran for a first down to highlight Barnstable’s drive but after a few short gains Bailey punted to Marshfield’s 15 yard line and the Bullet defense was trusted to hold the Rams. The Marshfield offense knew it was now or never and tried anything they could to get things going. Ellis and Litchman combined to wrap up O'Donnell on first down, then Kipnes held onto a Ram running back as France and Frieh came in to take him down. The Rams were frustrated on third down as they were called for a false start penalty sending them five yards back, then Kipnes added to their frustration, stopping the Rams run after only a yard gain. On what would be Marshfield’s last offensive play, Ellis and France rushed into the backfield and brought down Whitaker for a loss of five on fourth down.
The Bullet's hard working Mudie kept pushing ahead two yards on first down and it took three defenders to bring him down, he ran for six more on second down and one more on third, just one yard short of a first down. Mudie was handed the ball on fourth down and broke through a hole gaining first down and then some as he scrambled to the ten yard line of Marshfield with 1:18 left on the clock. With the Barnstable faithful wanting one more score, Murphy took the snap and went to a knee twice, safely securing victory.
