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Next up, Astros: BG routs Dover to advance to quarters

By Tom King - Staff Writer | Nov 6, 2022

Bishop Guertin's Ethan Labbe (33) tries to make it tough for Dover's Brett Davis (30) to tackle him during the Cards' 42-14 Divison I first round playoff win Saturday at Stellos Stadium. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

NASHUA – It almost seemed like a necessary evil, a rite of passage for the Bishop Guertin High School football team, so to speak.

Here they were, 7-2, seeded No. 5 in the 13-team Division I playoff extravaganza, but before they could play in a quarterfinal, they had to spend their Saturday with a ho-hum 42-14 win over No.12 Dover at Stellos Stadium.

But don’t worry, it had plenty of meaning.

“Talking to the kids after, it’s emotional to take part in a (posteason) game like that and see where the program’s come,” said Cards coach John Trisciani, who enjoyed his first playoff win since taking over four years ago. “We’re just ‘We finally got a playoff win’. And now can get some confidence.”

That’s because the next step is to face No. 5 Pinkerton Academy (8-2) in Derry next weekeind in the quarterfinals. The Astros, who beat BG here a year ago in the regular season, will certainly be a tougher opponent than the one they had today.

Dover (4-6) still had some highlights, including a successful on-sides kick to start the game. But a bad shotgun snap was recovered by BG and Matt Santosuosso, who ran for two scores and threw for two, found Ethan Chmielecki in the end zone for 10-yard TD strike to open the scoring. Five minutes later he ran it in from 35 yards out and BG was up 14-0.

Perhaps the biggest news of the day was the fact the Cards got senior back Charlie Bellavance involved in the offense, as he scored two first-half TDs and had eight carries for 43 yards. He has played some at linebacker this season, but injuries have held him back basically from fulltime, two-way duty. He was a beast through much of last season and the Cards have definitely missed him.

“Going up to Pinkerton, hopefully he got his feet wet there,” Trisciani said. “There were a couple (of plays) where we faked to him and he garnered enough attention where he got smashed.

“Having a threat back there is really important for both a running back and a quarterback. It just becomes a little harder for them to focus on one. So we’re a much better team when he’s back there.”

The game didn’t exactly start the way BG wanted, though.

“That onsides kick, right off the bat, and they get possession, that’s not what we’re looking for,” Trisciani said. “But luckily they gave the ball right back to us so it’s kind of like, no harm, no foul.

“And from there, it was kind of pedal to the metal offensively. We were really efficient, no turnovers, no negative plays, no penalties, so to be 28-0 at the half was really awesome.”

Trisciani felt he didn’t adjust very well to what the Green Wave was doing offensively in the second half, as the teams traded TDs without running time ever coming into play.

Dover’s two scores were a 6-yard run by Brady McInnes and a 10-yard jaunt by QB Ryder Aubin, who threw the ball well in the second half. BG had two Santosuosso scores: a 58-yard TD pass to a wide open Ronan Balistreri to answer Dover’s first TD and make it 35-7 with 3:20 left in the third and a 21-yard run that ended his day with 11:21 left in the game.

Now it’s on to Derry. In the other quarters, Nashua North will host Bedford Friday night (28-0 over Windham Saturday), Merrimack is at Londonderry Friday, and Exter will host Timberlane (20-14 over Concord yesterday).

“It’s going to be a big challenge,” Trisciani said.

Certainly more than yesterday.

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