Merrimack's Cash Torres (27) celebrates with George Fitzgerald (9) as the offense comes off the field after scoring the game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter Friday night in Merrimack vs. Nashua North. (Photo by Dan Attorri)

MERRIMACK – Every time the Tomahawks were down, they responded with a big play. A 15-yard penalty in the red zone was followed by a long touchdown pass. An interception thrown by the Tomahawks was followed by an interception of their own just three plays later. A bad snap was followed by a booming punt. And when Merrimack needed a touchdown to prevent its third straight loss, the offense came through.

Junior quarterback Maverick Torres threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to senior Shea Egan with 4:18 left in the game and the Tomahawks’ defense stopped the Titans in the red zone with one minute remaining to secure Merrimack’s first win of the season, a 14-10 victory over visiting Nashua North on Friday night.

“We overcame a lot of adversity throughout the night,” Merrimack head coach Kip Jackson said. “There were a lot of peaks and valleys between turnovers on downs, not finishing drives and things of that nature, but the kids found a way to get a win.”

Defense dominated most of the first half with most of the action happening between the 30 yard lines and each team only getting one trip to the red zone.

Titans senior running back Jedwin Lluveres (134 yards on 12 carries) broke away for a 36-yard pickup in the closing seconds of the first quarter to get Nashua North to the 15. A huge sack by Merrimack senior lineman and captain Zach Retey pushed the Titans back, but it was still close enough for junior kick Marco Raposo to boot a 40-yard field goal to give Nashua North a 3-0 lead with 10:14 left in the first half.

Torres (12-for-30, 194 passing yards, two touchdowns, interception) had a successful night throwing the ball and finally got Merrimack into the red zone for the first time with a minute left in the half. The Tomahawks drove to the 15 and Torres connected with senior Shea Scott on a short pass. Scott weaved through defenders and dove for the goal line, but the referees called illegal participation on Scott for going out of bounds before touching the ball, which bumped Merrimack back to the 30.

It was only a temporary setback. Torres passed to junior receiver Stephen Doyle (106 receiving yards on five catches) for a touchdown on the next play with 29 seconds left, sending the Tomahawks into halftime with a 6-3 lead.

Defense characterized most of the second half too, but Lluveres got away on another long run, this time 55 yards, to set up senior running back Kobe Perry for a 4-yard TD rush and a 10-6 Titan lead with 26 seconds left in the third quarter.

The Titans, who entered Friday night with a 2-0 record, looked poised to maintain an undefeated mark when sophomore safety Yandel Velazquez intercepted Torres on the first play of the fourth quarter. But three plays later Merrimack sophomore defensive back Greg Matthews returned the favor on a throw by Titan QB Brady O’Connor (3-for-11, 12 yards).

The ensuing Merrimack drive ended with an incomplete pass in the end zone. The drive after that ended with a three-and-out and a punt. An errant snap meant that Merrimack junior punter Connor Page didn’t have much time to get off a clean kick, but he still managed to boot the ball 46 yards to the North 21. The Titans’ returner immediately fumbled the ball and the Tomahawk blockers were ready to pounce, with sophomore Brogan Matte coming up with the ball to give Merrimack possession on the 21.

“Those are the little things that end up becoming big things,” coach Jackson said.

Two plays later Torres found Egan (54 receiving yards on four catches) in the end zone and Torres tossed to Doyle for an extra two points for a 14-10 lead with 4:18 left.

North started with the ball on its 36 and reached Merrimack’s 19 with a minute left in the game, but a couple of incomplete passes led to a turnover on downs and the Tomahawks’ offense needed just three plays to run out the clock.

“Kids came out slow and continued to play slow,” Nashua North head coach Chad Zibolis said. “But (Merrimack), they came to play. They were chomping at the bit and they made us feel it. I’ve always said that (Merrimack) is so well coached. They’re positioned well, they’re in their stances well, they bend down the line of scrimmage well. They stopped our run game and we couldn’t get anything going in a rhythm. We tip our caps to them.”