Stone Bridge Routs West Springfield in Season Opener

By Levi Chronister

Saturday, September 1, 2007

Falling behind 17-0 early, Stone Bridge High's football team took nearly 15 minutes to score its first touchdown against West Springfield High on Friday.

The Bulldogs took less than that to reach the end zone seven more times, shaking off the early season jitters and rolling to a 56-36 victory at Ronald J. Mobayed Memorial Stadium.

"I think we have a tradition here, that we can bring it back, and we're not going to completely fall apart, and I was proud of them for that," Stone Bridge coach Mickey Thompson said. "I mean, I was falling apart, but they pulled it back together."

Struggling to adjust to game atmospheres and situations for the first time this season, Stone Bridge (1-0) fumbled the ball on two of its first three possessions, gained just two first downs in the first quarter and failed to convert a fourth-and-short deep in West Springfield territory late in the period.

The Spartans (0-1) took advantage of the Bulldogs miscues and failures, jumping out to a 17-0 lead less than two minutes into the second quarter thanks to a 45-yard field goal, a fumble recovery in the end zone and a 93-yard pass.

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Stone Bridge defeats West Springfield

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Guiliano Billetz waits for the Stone Bridge kickoff. The Bulldogs played their first game of the season Friday against the West Springfield Spartans. The Bulldogs would go on to win the game 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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Spartans quarterback Bryn Renner reads the Bulldogs defense Friday in the first half during the first game of the season. Renner would lead West Springfield to a touchdown and two field goals during the first half of play. (Cara McCoy)

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During the first half, West Springfield jumps on a bad snap by Stone Bridge during its first drive of the season. Despite the poor opening series, Stone Bridge came back to win 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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The West Springfield Spartans band plays to the home crowd Friday during the first game of the season after the Spartans scored a touchdown. Fight songs were not enough to muster a win as the Spartans lost to the Bulldogs, 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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The West Springfield High School season begins Friday as they take the field against the Stone Bridge Bulldogs. (Cara McCoy)

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Stone Bridge Bulldogs fans watch from the visitors section of Ronald J. Mobayed stadium. Their team defeated the West Springfield Spartans, 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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Bulldogs coach Mickey Thompson talks to No. 50 Chris Simei during halftime. (Cara McCoy)

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Bulldogs coach Mickey Thompson watches as his team warms up before the second half of the game against the Spartans Friday night. The Bulldogs went on to score 42 points in the second half. (Cara McCoy)

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Bulldogs coach Mickey Thompson congratulates No. 18 Mike Olsen after a play Friday. Stone Bridge defeated West Springfield 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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Bulldogs kicker No. 31 Ronnie Shaban assists teammate Travis Hannam early in the third quarter. (Cara McCoy)

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Stone Bridge senior defensive lineman Doug Sims sets up for a play during the third quarter. The Bulldogs kept up the defensive pressure in the second half against West Springfield. (Cara McCoy)

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Running back Matt Irwin runs to the sideline after a Stone Bridge touchdown during the third quarter of the first game of the 2007 season Friday. Irwin had 102 yards rushing, 69 yards receiving and two touchdown runs for the Bulldogs in Friday's game. (Cara McCoy)

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Bulldogs cheerleaders pump out push-ups for points after Stone Bridge scored one of six touchdowns during the third quarter Friday. The Bulldogs went on to defeat the Spartans, 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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Bulldogs senior Matt Irwin runs toward the end zone Friday during the third quarter of Stone Bridge's first game of the season. Irwin posted 102 yards rushing with two touchdowns in the game. (Cara McCoy)

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Stone Bridge's Ronnie Shaban prepares for a kick during the Bulldogs first game of the 2007 season against the West Springfield Spartans. (Cara McCoy)

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West Springfield quarterback Bryn Renner runs toward the end zone Friday during the second half of the Spartans' first game of the season. (Cara McCoy)

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The Stone Bridge Bulldogs shake hands with the West Springfield Spartans after the game Friday night in their first game of the 2007 season. The Bulldogs defeated the Spartans with a final score of 56-36. (Cara McCoy)

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"It was pretty much chaos on the sideline," Thompson said. "I mean, you're trying to figure things out, you're trying to get the rotation, and then you tell these kids that, you know, scrimmages are easy because you stand over there and you can slow things down and guys can go in and all that, and now all of a sudden it's no huddle, and guys are having to go in and off, and we were having so many mistakes and so much chaos on the sideline."

Stone Bridge finally settled down on its next possession with Patrick Thompson hitting Virginia Tech signee Jevon Gouveia for an 81-yard touchdown on the second play of the drive.

After the Spartans pushed their lead to 13 points on another field goal, the Bulldogs cut the deficit down to single digits on a four-yard run by Kareem Alexander. Stone Bridge gained three first downs on the drive, including two big passes from first-time starter Patrick Thompson to Matt Irwin.

The junior signal-caller nearly put the Bulldogs in the end zone again right before halftime, but one pass to Ryan Moody was called back for offensive pass interference and another was just beyond the receiver as the clock expired.

"We really didn't want to put him in a position in the first game to make plays, but he was able to make a few plays and keep us in the game," coach Thompson said of his quarterback.

The Bulldogs made play after play in the third quarter, scoring 42 points — including five touchdowns in just over five minutes — and picking off Spartans quarterback Bryn Renner three times.

"Last year we started out slow, and came back in the second half," Gouveia said. "It just really comes down to somebody stepping up, making the big play. After that, you just keep the momentum."

Gouveia was that somebody for much of the period, scoring on an 80-yard run on the first play of the second half. After taking a direct snap, Gouveia faked a handoff to Thompson and went untouched up the middle for the touchdown. The run gave Stone Bridge its first lead of the game at 21-20, just 12 seconds into the quarter.

Mike Stancik picked off Renner's pass on West Springfield's first play after the ensuing kickoff and Thompson hit Moody for a 17-yard touchdown two plays later. The Bulldogs' defense held the Spartans to a three-and-out on their next drive before Anderson scored for the second time, putting Stone Bridge up 35-20.

Back-to-back Gouveia interceptions led to a scoring run by Matt Irwin and a touchdown pass from Gouveia to Moody as the Bulldogs increased their lead to 29 points.

"We were able to make a few adjustments, changed some blocking, did a couple of different things and we busted a couple early and the kids are going, 'OK, we're back on track,'" Thompson said. "Things just snowballed from there."

The Spartans scored their first touchdown in 20 minutes of game time on the last of four straight Renner completions, but the Bulldogs answered right back on a 78-yard run by Irwin with 26 seconds left in the third quarter that put the game out of reach.

Gouveia finished with 150 rushing yards on seven carries and two receptions for 109 yards, and Irwin rushed for 102 yards and caught three passes for 69 yards. Patrick Thompson completed 8 of 10 passes for 212 yards and two touchdowns, and Moody caught four passes for 88 yards before leaving the game with an injury in the fourth quarter. The senior wide receiver's status for next week's game against Robinson is unknown.

"Hopefully Ryan's OK. He's a major part of what we do," Thompson said. "He hit his head somewhere, and then he felt pain in his lower back. We're just being safe, but he's still got some pain in his lower back, so he's probably 50-50 for next week."

Extra Points

By Paul Tenorio and Matt Brooks