Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/tag/football/page/9/)
Winning championships is nothing new for Watertown’s Kourtney Kennedy, who won four state titles with the Raiders, but this fall she was was part of one at the Div. I college level. Kennedy plays for UConn, which went undefeated and captured the NCAA Div. I Field Hockey championship with a 2-1 win over Maryland. “It was something I will never forget,” Kennedy told Wicked Local Watertown.
Even more than most years, the end of the 2017 season has been a whirlwind for the Watertown High School football team, which capped its season with a victory over Belmont on Thanksgiving. Watertown football coach John Cacace had a chance to reflect on the season after the game, and the career of his senior class which has has reached new heights. This year the team had an extra game, just six days before the Raiders’ rivalry game. “Its just been a grind for us. We haven’t had a chance to sit back and relax and take it all in,” Cacace said.
The Watertown High School football put an exclamation point on an already successful year by defeating rival Belmont 35-16 in the annual Thanksgiving game at Victory Field on Thursday morning. The game came less than a week after the Raiders’ loss in the Div. 5 Eastern Mass final, but Watertown looked sharp against the Marauders. Watertown football coach John Cacace said his seniors wanted to defeat their rivals. “After the careers they had and after the season they had, you don’t want to go out with a bad taste in your mouth,” Cacace said. “They really wanted this one and they played like they wanted it.”
The 2017 Thanksgiving Day game at Victory Field pits two teams which have had very different fortunes during the season, but the traditional rivalry tends to bring out the best in the underdog and usually makes for a close game. The Raiders look to extend their winning streak over their rivals to six when they play the game at Victory Field on Thursday. Follow live updates here. Kickoff is at at 10:15 a.m.:
Watertown runs out the clock on the 97th meeting with Belmont. Final Watertown 35, Belmont 16
49 seconds left 4th, Belmont kicks 35 yard field goal.
MEDFORD – Watertown High School’s magical run through the MIAA Football tournament came to a crashing halt Friday evening as they fell 41-3 to Dennis-Yarmouth in the Eastern Mass. final at Hormel Stadium. The game did not start well. After getting a first down, Watertown junior quarterback Nick McDermott was sacked. The next play, he was intercepted and it would have been returned for a touchdown if not for a penalty on D-Y.
{The date of the field hockey game has been changed and the soccer information has been updated at 12:19 p.m. on Nov. 13}
Watertown High School athletes are competing in the post-season, and not just for team sports.
Cross Country
Emily Koufos competed against the top runners in schools of Watertown’s size in the Div. 5 Eastern State Championships and finished in fourth place. The performance came on the heels of winning the Middlesex League meet. The WHS senior ran a time of 19:11.95 over the 5K course at the Wrentham Developmental Center on Saturday.
The Watertown High School football team officially became the Cardiac Kids with a third straight late comeback win in an MIAA State Tournament game. Friday night The Raiders scored two touchdowns in less that two minutes to defeat Lynnfield 38-34 in the Section Final and grab the North Section title. Watertown (6-4) held a 10 point lead with three minutes left in the first half, but the host and top-seeded Pioneers (8-2) rallied for three straight touchdowns to go up 28-17 with 4:44 left in the third quarter. The Raiders got back within four late in the third quarter when senior receiver Conor Kennelly caught a 19-yard touchdown. The Pioneers went up by 10 points with 2:55 left in the fourth quarter when Leo Quinn ran for a 18-yard touchdown, but Watertown blocked the extra point.
The Watertown boys soccer team defeated Bedford in overtime at Victory Field on Monday night to move on to the Div. 3 North Section semifinals. The fifth-seeded Raiders (13-6-1) found themselves behind in the first half of the Section quarterfinal when the 13th-seeded Buccaneers (7-11-2) scored just a few minutes into the game. Watertown’s Robert Danielian tied the score with a goal in the ninth minute. Danielian struck again late in the first half to give the Raiders a 2-1 lead.