BRISTOL, N.H. - Mascoma football’s best stretch of the fall ran into a familiar roadblock on Saturday. Second-seeded Newfound beat the third-seeded Royals 44-28 in the semifinals, ending Mascoma’s season one game short of the championship.
The Royals put up 28 points on the road, but Newfound answered with its highest scoring day of the season. The Bears had also beaten Mascoma 40-20 in Canaan on Oct. 3, and they swept the season series with Saturday’s win.
The loss snapped a four-game win streak. After a 2-2 start, Mascoma caught fire in October, beating Prospect Mountain 43-16, Hillsboro-Deering 53-20, Missisquoi Valley 54-8 and Farmington-Nute 36-8 to finish the regular season 6-2 and earn the third seed.
The Royals finish 6-3 and scored 268 points across nine games.
Several Royals were honored on the all-state team the day before the semifinal. Sophomore running back Aiden Booth, senior lineman Caleb Rostron, junior linebacker James Weston and junior cornerback Kane Bergeron made the first team. Sophomore running back John Ortiz, sophomore fullback Dom Marrotte, junior center Joel Backlund, sophomore linebacker Hunter Miller and junior safety Lucas Petty made the second team, and senior linebacker Tristan Clack earned honorable mention.
Newfound moves on to the championship game against top-seeded Newport-Mount Royal on Saturday, November 14, at 1 p.m. at Bank of NH Stadium in Laconia.
Other relevant play on Saturday, November 7:
Hillsboro-Deering 7 at Newport-Mount Royal 42 Newport, which beat Mascoma 24-6 on Sept. 12, rolled past Hillsboro-Deering, which the Royals beat 53-20 on Oct. 17.
CROSS COUNTRY
Mascoma at the Meet of Champions in Hopkinton | Saturday, November 7
Mascoma cross country got one more race against the best runners in the state on Saturday at the Meet of Champions at Hopkinton State Fairgrounds.
The Royals girls, who earned their spot by finishing second in their division a week earlier, placed 17th with 524 points. Freshman Paige Reney led Mascoma in 105th place in 22:07.6, followed by Brooklyn Rice (114th, 22:36.3), senior Isabella Currier (132nd, 24:11.5), freshman Nobelee Cappetta (141st, 25:24.9) and freshman Maddy Song (143rd, 25:50.8).
Three Royals boys also qualified as individuals. Senior Carl Russell, who was fourth in his division a week earlier, placed 49th in 16:56.9. Senior Karson Rogers was 76th in 17:39.9 and freshman Ransom Donigian was 85th in 17:50.5.
Exeter won the girls team title and Hopkinton’s Madeleine Lane won the girls race in a course record, while Hanover won the boys team title behind individual champion Ben Groves.
That wraps up the day for Mascoma Valley Regional High School sports. We’ll see you next time!