HARWICH – It was not the preview of the Thanksgiving Day Game that Cape Tech fans were hoping for when the Crusaders fell to the Upper Cape Tech Rams 27-20 in football action on Sept. 29.

It was a game that started with promise when the Crusaders, on the strength of Zach Higgins and Archer Estinvil, took a 14-7 lead after the first quarter, with Higgins opening the game with a nine-yard score that followed a determined march to the end zone by Cape Tech.

After UCT's Juzary Salim ran in a 19-yard score for the Rams, the Crusaders responded with another TD, this time from Estinvil after another downfield march that was capped off by a successful two-point conversion from Higgins.

Estinvil scored again in the third, but the conversion pass was incomplete. Nonetheless, the Crusaders took a commanding 20-7 lead into halftime, much to the delight of the smattering of fans along the sidelines.

It was after the break that everything unraveled for the home team as the Rams scored two touchdowns in the third and another in the final frame to rally back for a 27-20 victory as the Crusaders were held scoreless by UCT's stepped-up defense.

The previous week saw the Crusaders travel off-Cape to face Old Colony in what became the team's first victory of the season when they triumphed against the Cougars 8-0. Next up for Cape Tech is a 1 p.m. game on Saturday (Oct. 6) against Blue Hills, the team's final home game of the regular season.