Nauset Football Falls To East Bridgewater For First Loss

 NORTH EASTHAM – The Nauset football team couldn’t hold onto the momentum. 

 Under a heavy downpour and howling winds, the Warriors couldn’t combat a surge of offense from East Bridgewater in a 35-12 loss on Friday night. 

 It was the first loss of the season for Nauset, which took a 12-6 lead into the second quarter before the visiting Vikings built a 22-12 halftime lead after Aidan Clancy ran for a two-yard touchdown as time expired at the end of the second frame.

 East Bridgewater (2-0) carried the momentum into the second half, as Clancy broke free for a 33-yard rushing score — his third of the game — to help the visitors garner a 28-12 advantage over Nauset (2-1).

 “That was the turning point in the game,” Nauset coach Jesse Peno said of East Bridgewater’s late first-half touchdown. “I think that little momentum was something we couldn’t overcome.”

 The Warriors used their ground game to establish control early, as senior Joey Berardi ran for a 12-yard touchdown on the team’s opening possession. 

After East Bridgewater quarterback Ethan Pohl evened the score with a 12-yard touchdown of his own, Nauset junior quarterback Brendan Peno rushed for a one-yard touchdown to give the Warriors a lead in the final minute of the opening quarter. 

The wet and windy conditions slowed down Nauset’s usual high-flying passing attack, but Peno was pleased to see his team establish a strong running game that showcased the team’s physicality. 

“Obviously we like to spread out and chuck the ball around a bit, but we weren’t able to do that today,” the coach said. “I thought we came out physical in the beginning, it was back and forth. We’ve been throwing it a little bit more, but Joe has been making some good plays.”

Berardi has been one of the bright spots through the Warriors’ first three games. After sitting out the past two seasons to focus on basketball, the senior has been a welcomed addition and has served as a key contributor on both sides of the ball. 

“He’s a physical presence,” Peno said. “On both sides of the ball, he has stuff that you can’t teach and can’t coach. He’s an explosive guy and a great character guy. He jumped in at quarterback at the end and was running around when we were down by 20-something points, so he’ll do anything for the team and is a great asset to have.”

Nauset’s hopes for a second-half rally were thwarted by injuries, as the team lost Brendan Peno and fellow junior Seamus Mahoney on the same play. Coach Peno said Brendan hurt his elbow, while Mahoney was shaken up after a collision. 

Their early exits were too much to overcome after senior Owen White was sidelined with a knee injury during the first half. 

With health a concern moving forward, Peno said the loss will serve as the first adversity the team has faced after it cruised to wins over Dighton-Rehoboth (36-15) and Lunenburg (44-16) to open the season. 

It won’t get any easier Friday, when the team hosts Cohasset at 6 p.m. Friday.

“This is the first time that we’ve faced some adversity,” Peno said. “We had two wins by pretty big margins, and not that those came easy but we didn’t get challenged a ton. Today we got challenged — we punched and they punched back. 

“We’re playing some good teams coming up, so we’re going to have to learn from today and hopefully use it in the future.”