Bishop Guertin outlasts Dover to move on in D1 football playoffs (video)

NASHUA - Anthony Nalen had a feeling there would be a lot of points scored Saturday night when his Bishop Guertin High School football team hosted Dover in the Division I preliminary round.

The first-year Cardinals coach didn't know the two teams would almost combine for triple digits.

The offenses went up and down the field at Stellos Stadium, piling up yards and points, until finally, No. 8 Bishop Guertin was able to make enough stops on defense to secure a 56-42 win over No. 9 Dover.

Up next for the Cardinals is a quarterfinal against top-seeded Pinkerton, which had a bye, at 6 p.m. Friday in Derry.

"I figured it was going to be a pretty high-scoring game," Nalen said. "They just kept coming back at it. I haven’t been in a game like this, in terms of high scoring, but I knew their quarterback is outstanding. They’ve got good skill, they’ve got a really good line, and they’ve done it all year."

On this night, Nalen's offense was just a little better, as quarterback Mike MacDonough was 21 of 33 passing for 355 yards and four touchdowns to go with 44 yards and two more scores on the ground. In the second half alone, the senior completed 67 percent of his passes for 227 yards and three touchdowns.

Cody Szymansky caught two of those touchdown passes, as he finished with 10 catches for 199 yards, and Ronan Balistreri had three catches for 99 yards and two touchdowns, and what proved to be the game-ending interception.

AJ Holmes also scored twice, returning an interception 50 yards for a touchdown on Dover's second possession while adding a 29-yard scoring run to top an eight-carry, 64-yard rushing performance for Bishop Guertin (6-3)

"It was really just a chess match," Nalen said. "When they went to that even front, we knew we had loose coverage on the perimeter. And when they went to that odd front, we knew they were bracketing Cody and we ran the ball. It was just kind of a chess match.

"A couple of times, we got caught in a run when they were in a four-man front and we threw against a three-man front. There are times where they got us, but overall, I thought we stayed in front of that."

Dover (5-4) got a big game from its Ryder Aubin, it's senior quarterback, as he completed 16 of 35 passes for 215 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. Aubin also had 49 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.

Brady McInnes caught four passes for 51 yards and a score and returned a kickoff 91 yards for another touchdown to help keep the Green Wave in it in the first half. Benjamin Allen added four catches for 75 yards and a touchdown.

But after the Cardinals scored on their first possession and Holmes' pick-6, the Green Wave found itself down 14-0 and chasing points all night.

"That kind of set the table for how the seesaw was the rest of the game," Dover coach Eric Cumba said. "There were times when we were on the doorstep of getting back into it. The kick return was huge. We got a stop, but then we weren’t able (to score) on the next drive. We just didn’t make the play we needed when we had to and they did. That’s the difference in a game like this."

Despite falling in that early hole, Dover was able to get back in it tying the game twice in the second quarter, with McInnes's kickoff return making it 21-21 with 2:34 left in the half.

Bishop Guertin had a response, going 65 yards in six plays and finding the end zone on a 23-yard catch-and-run from MacDonough to Szymansky to make 28-21 with 37.7 seconds remaining until halftime.

That was enough time for Dover to drive down to the Cardinals' 23-yard line, and with 2.1 seconds on the clock, the Green Wave lined up for a 40-yard field goal. But instead of kicking, Aubin, who is the holder, ran with the snap and tried to find Jacob Mangum.

Mangum got tangled up with a defender on the play and Sam Franco intercepted the pass in the end zone to end the half.

The Cardinals received to open the second half, and on third-and-6 from his own 34, MacDonough hit Balistreri for a 66-yard touchdown to give Bishop Guertin a two-score lead again.

"We knew we were getting the ball to start the second half, so having that seven-point lead was at halftime was huge," Nalen said. "(MacDonough) is the leader of this team and the guy we follow, especially for the offense. When he is out there, we get a boost for sure."

Dover answered on its first possession with a 7-yard touchdown run by Aubin, but MacDonough and Szymansky connected for a 70-yard score on the Cardinals' second play of the ensuing drive to make it 42-28.

"Not only did they score, but they were on big plays," Cumba said. "Those were just blown coverages. Those were things we talked about all week, making sure we avoided, and at the worst time, we didn’t avoid them."

The Green Wave got back within seven, 49-42, on a 1-yard run by Aubin with 10:19 remaining, and it looked like Dover's defense was going to get off the field. But on fourth-and-11, after three straight incompletions, MacDonough hit Balistreri for an 11-yard gain.

Five plays later, the two connected again for a 22-yard touchdown to finish out the scoring.