Dover football keeps its cool in frenzied finish

The Dover High School football team got a month's worth of twists and turns just in the final five minutes of last Friday's 7-6 win over Exeter.

After keeping the Blue Hawks in check for the whole game, the Green Wave watched as Exeter completed an improbable completion in the end zone with 4:05 remaining in the game.

But when the teams lined up for the extra point, Exeter's kicker slipped and the point-after attempt went into the back of the Blue Hawks' line.

In moments, Dover coach Eric Cumba went from preparing his team to drive down the field for a score to trying to keep the ball away from the Green Wave's opponent.

"Them not getting that point was huge from a momentum standpoint," Cumba said. "It's almost like they didn't score because, at that point, you start playing a numbers game. We get the ball back and have the lead.

"The thought process changes completely. How are we going to get the last four minutes and change off the clock?"

In this instance, Dover turned to quarterback Darian Lopez-Sullivan and the junior delivered, helping the Green Wave run out the clock along with senior Beau Normandeau.

"Beau had a couple of big plays on that drive to seal the game," Cumba said. "Darian was great on that drive. He ran for a first down, he threw for a first down, made a couple of big plays.

"The best part about it was watching everyone keep their composure and not get too frantic. If there's anything positive that's come from (the pandemic), it's that the kids have developed an immense appreciation for something like this."

That appreciation, and the experiences the Green Wave players had a year ago, helped put them in a position to beat Exeter for the second time in three years, despite not having played a game during the first week of the regular season. Dover had its game against Spaulding canceled due to positive Covid-19 cases at Spaulding.

"Teams are still trying to knock the rust off," Cumba said. "We had 14 first downs in that game. I'm not sure how many games I've coached where we've had that many, but the score certainly didn't show it."

While other schools in Division I have had a limited number of their own fans in the stands for games, Dover had none last week, something that Cumba thought the team noticed in the pregame, but not after kickoff.

With the team getting new uniforms, everything about this season looks different, except the game.

"It's a complete overhaul of even how the team looks on the field," the coach said. "You add in the distancing and no crowd, you knew it. But I think all the kids would agree, once it started, we were just in the game."

Dover will have another home game this Friday at 7 p.m., when Winnacunnet comes to town.

"They're playing very well," Cumba said. "They're well-coached and similar to us. They brought a lot of players back. It will come down to what team is best prepared and has the best week of practice."