In battle of unbeaten football teams, Monadnock remains perfect with win over Newport

SWANZEY CENTER – With sole possession of first-place at stake, the two best high school football squads in the Division III North Conference met under the lights Friday evening in a pivotal late-season matchup.

When the dust settled – and there was plenty of it that got churned up by night’s end – Monadnock (7-0) kept its unbeaten record alive by downing Newport (6-1) in convincing fashion, 37-14, and in the process ended the Tigers’ bid for a second undefeated season since 2015.

Bolstered by a seemingly unblockable defensive front, and a power-running attack, the Huskies built a commanding first-half lead that they never surrendered.

“We talked a lot about focus and just doing our jobs,” Monadnock coach Ryan Avery said of his team’s mindset heading into the game against a strong Newport squad. “Every now and then we lose focus and give up a quick score, but we mostly did a pretty good job with avoiding that tonight.”

Senior fullback Junius Adams got the Huskies on the board with a short scoring run midway through the first quarter. On their next offensive possession, Chandler Matson emerged from a pileup at the line of scrimmage - as if performing a magician’s trick - and trotted 23-yards to the end zone to put Monadnock up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Two years removed from an undefeated season, the Tigers had trouble throughout the first half with trying to block Monadnock defenders. Newport’s Ethan Houde did get the Tigers into scoring position after scrambling out of the backfield for big gain. But Houde was subsequently sacked on consecutive plays, and the Tigers eventually turned the ball over downs without producing any points off of a promising drive.

The second quarter saw Monadock’s lead balloon to 30-0 after two costly Newport turnovers.

Following Joe Morrell’s interception of a Houde pass, Matson took a handoff from quarterback Tim Santaw and sprinted around the edge of the defense for a 1-yard touchdown.

On the ensuing kickoff, the ball bounced off the hands of the Tigers returner and was recovered by the Huskies. Without wasting any time, Santaw dropped back and threaded a perfect pass over the defensive secondary and into the hands of an in-stride Morrell for a 26-yard score.

“It was a perfect call,” Avery said of the quick strike before halftime. “Everyone did their job - (Joe) ran a great route, (Tim) put the ball right on the money. You couldn’t ask for more, it was perfect.”

To its credit, Newport responded well in the third quarter. Down by 30 points, Houde led the Tigers downfield as they began the arduous journey of chipping away at the Monadnock lead. The often-pressured quarterback was able to connect with Kyle Rossiter on a curl route, which the receiver turned into a 40-yard touchdown. For the briefest of moments, Newport resembled the team that outscored their opponents 217-34 during the previous six games.

Undeterred, Monadnock’s offense responded in kind when Tim Hart – who contributed big plays on offense, defense, and special teams - made a brilliant cut in front of a would-be tackler and scored on a 9-yard toss play to re-extend the Huskies’ sizable lead.

Newport added another late score, but the outcome was never in doubt.

“We’ve been here before,” Avery said when reflecting on his team’s position late in the season. “Last year we let it slip out of our hands. We just remind our team of (what happened last season) and continue to stay focused.”

Monadnock is again in great position heading into the final week of the D3 North schedule. The Huskies will try to maintain their momentum against league-rival Stevens next Friday. Newport, also still in good position despite the loss, hosts Newfound Regional in preparation for a playoff push.