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FINALS FRUSTRATION: Milford fall short of Owls, 13-10

By Tom King - Staff Writer | Nov 21, 2021

Milford's Logan Barnhill and teammataes ponder the tough 13-10 loss to Timberlane as they leave the field after Saturday's Division II championship game at Pinkerton Academy in Derry. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

DERRY — Any football game is about one thing: scoring points.

But the Milford High School Spartans simply didn’t score enough of them in Saturday’s Division II championship game, falling to unbeaten Timberlane 13-10 at Pinkerton Academy.

“Unfortunatley we struggled on offense today,” Milford coach Keith Jones said, his team finishing what was still a successful season at 8-3. “They had a lot of answers. They controlled the points of attack. We weren’t getting to their linebackers, they were killing us.”

The Spartans managed just 75 yards on the ground, and that is simply not their game. Timnberlane led the entire way, and their back, Dom Pallaria, rushed for 157 yards and a touchdown on 32 carries.

But the real killer for the Spartans, who stayed within striking distance, were two field goals of 32 and 21 yards by Owl kicker Harrison Bloom. Bloom’s first boot made it 10-3 at the half and his second made it a two-score game, 13-3, with 8:50 to play.

The Spartans closed to within 13-10, finally getting into the end zone on back Caden Zalenski’s 7 yard TD run with 3:33 to play. Up until that moment, their only points were a 37-yard second quarter field goal by Colin Gregg.

However, after the touchdown, Gregg’s onside kick rolled out of bounds and the Owls got the ball at midfield and ran out the clock.

Milford just couldn’t play its game.

“They’re just a big team, they played hard,” Zalenski said of the Owls. “Credit to them, they played great. We just struggled moving the ball at times.”

In fact, the Spartans threw for more yards, with quarterback Chuck Urda completing 6 of 9 for 90 yards, including three big passes on the Spartans’ scoring drive, plus one that was negated by penalty. Spartan Trice Cote had three big catches for 29 yards in that march.

But that’s not Milford’s game.

“For the most part, our guys were able to contain that (Milford) run game,” Timberlane coach Kevin Fitzgerald said, his team enjoying a perfect 12-0 season but likely moving up to Division I next year, “and that was probably the difference in the game.”

So was Pallaria, who after a few yards here and a few yards there broke free for a 51-yard TD run on the second play of the second quarter to help make it a 7-0 game.

“I go right up the middle, I cut it outside, then saw open field and took it from there,” Pallaria said.

Milford’s Colin Gregg booted a 37-yard field goal with 4:02 left in the half to make it 7-3, but the Owls had been living in Spartan territory most of the half, and after a 13 play drive settled for Bloom’s first field goal with a tenth of a second left on the clock to take a 10-3 lead into the half.

The Owls had only three points left in them, thanks to the Spartan defense that ruined another 13 play drive, stopping Pallaria for no gain on fourth-and-2 from the Milford 4 yard line with 3:25 left in the third quarter.

“These kids have been resilient all year; defensively we’ve been as tough as anybody all year long. And they showed it again today. Stop after stop after stop, just a tribute to what they bring to the table.”

The Owls got in the red zone again on their next possession, but this time didn’t test that defense on fourth down – fourth and goal from the 3, to be exact. No, this time they smartly opted to make it a two score game with a Bloom chip shot field goal for a 13-3 lead with 8:53 to play.

But when they closed to 13-10 with just over three to play, the Spartans may have felt their resilience might pay off. However, Owls quarterback Garrett Shivell ripped off an 11-yard run and then a 3-yarder for an all important first down with 1:48 to play after the Spartans had stonewalled Pallaria for a 2-yard loss. After that, victory formation.

“It’s a huge thrill,” Pallaria said. “Coming in freshman year, I never would have expected this. It’s a perfect moment, perfect way to end my senior season.”

Contrast that joy with the frustration on the Spartans’ end, as while the Owls capture their first title since 2001, Milford is still seeking their first one since 2003.

“It stinks, but they (Timberlane) certainly earned it,” Jones said. “I told my kids, they should still feel like winners. Helluva year.”

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