Charlie Breitrose
Watertown’s Austin Farry grabs a pass from Nick Giordano for a touchdown, then celebrates with Tyler Poulin.
Victory Field was filled with thrills and excitement on Halloween night, but it could be a night that haunts the Watertown’s football team.
The Raiders (7-1) hosted Swampscott (4-4) in the Div. 4 North section quarterfinal. Watertown with the first undefeated regular season since 1977 and looked poised to keep rolling when they took the first possession and scored a touchdown.
Quarterback Nick Giordano kept the drive alive by scrambling and hitting Zach Rimsa on a 3rd and 9 play. The QB then capped the drive with a 21 yard run to the end zone.
Charlie Breitrose
Watertown quarterback Nick Giordano runs the ball against Swampscott.
The Raiders doubled the lead with a long pass from Giordano to Austin Farry. The receiver reached over the Big Blue defender to take the ball and then dashed into the end zone.
The celebration was short lived because Swampscott’s Ryan Cresta returned the kickoff for a 95-yard touchdown.
The Raiders missed a field goal at the end of the first half, and held a 14-7 lead.
In the second half the Big Blue cut the lead to to four with a field goal, but Watertown extended the lead again with a touchdown.
Charlie Breitrose
Watertown’s Brian Dallacosta tackles Swampscott running back Michael Faia.
The Raiders held off their opponents until 4:03 left in the fourth quarter when Swampscott quarterback Devin Conroy threw a six-yard touchdown pass. The Big Blue then recovered the onside kick and Conroy threw his second touchdown and added a two-point conversion to go up 24-21 with under a minute left in the game, according to a report in The Salem News.
The season goes on for the Raiders, who will host the loser of the Lynnfield-Saugus game next week in the consolation bracket.