By MARC THALER
Staff Writer
mthaler@yourneighborhoodnews.com

SIDELINE SCREAMS – PA seniorJim Lacasse (No. 46) and freshman teammate Brian Juranty lend their vocal support to quarterback Matt Allen during the senior signal-caller’s late-game 35-yard touchdown run, which proved to be the difference in the game. (Marc Thaler Photo)

PEMBROKE – For most of the afternoon, Pembroke Academy senior Matt Allen, the Spartans’ sensational playmaking quarterback, was held in check by a diligent John Stark defense.

But when it counted most, PA’s senior standout stepped up and stepped into the end zone for the second time, leading the Spartans to their first victory in seven chances, 14-6, against the Generals (0-7) on Saturday, Oct. 16.

From behind center at Stark's 35-yard line, Allen surveyed the scene and changed the play at the line of scrimmage. PAfaked a run off-tackle to the left, and Allen bootlegged to a wide open right side of the field.

The result was a 35-yard touchdown run with 3:07 remaining in regulation, breaking a 6-6 deadlock and allowing the Spartans to break into the win column.

“I saw all of their defensive backs go over (to the left) and I knew as long as my wide receiver had the block I was taking it,” Allen said. “I was thinking, ‘Just get outside. I can get it.’”

“I was looking for the first down, quite frankly,” said PA head coach Rick Doell. “But we got a nice block by our wide receiver Ben Couture. And our tight end Floyd Brigham going downfield made a nice block and we put it in.”

The eventual game-winning play proved particularly devastating for a winless Generals’ club that, outside of allowing a second-quarter 2-yard Allen TD run, contained the Spartans’key cog.

“They were really conscious of Matt, obviously,” said Doell. “Like I told Matt, if I was gonna defend us, I would put somebody on him all the time.”

“It was the right call at the right time,” said a dejected Bill Raycraft, John Stark’s head coach. “That’s a great athlete and he got around outside ... So to have it come down to one play really hurts. He won it for them. That’s the bottom line.”

The victory provided PA players with their first chance to celebrate in ’04, douse Doell with an ice-cold Gatorade bath and, most importantly, witness firsthand how difficult it is to win. “We’ve all talked about the habits of winning,” Doell said. “I think it bears fruit now that we have an opportunity to show success because of our practice ethic and our work ethic during the week. What it does is set a precedent for the young kids that are gonna be here.”

After the game’s opening drive, a 75-yard scoring march by Stark that drained the first 10:10 off the clock, PA appeared to be in trouble. “After that first drive I said ‘Oh boy, here we go.’ They were pushing us around pretty good,” Doell said. “But that was the last time they scored. We made some nice plays.”

The Spartans were clutch, especially on defense; they forced five JS turnovers. A fumble recovery by Christian Beauregard, plus interceptions by Allen, Nick Krycki, Carlos Muniz and Tyler Boisvert, kept Stark off the scoreboard the rest of the way.

“The guys who turn the ball over the most are gonna lose 80 percent of the time,” Doell said. “If you have multiple turnovers, you’re putting yourself behind the eight-ball.”

Unlike their visitors, the Spartans predominantly played mistake-free football. According to the coach, turnovers haven’t plagued his club as much as penalties in ’04.

“This was the first time in seven weeks we didn’t jump offsides on our first series,” Doell said.

Saturday’s contest was also the first time PA found itself playing with a late-game lead,foreign territory for a team usually in the opponent’s rearview mirror by halftime.

“With five minutes left in the game we were going downhill,” Doell said. “We weren’t going uphill. We were in the game. That’s all we wanted to be in was a competitive situation. It was important for us to get in that situation and allow our kids to make some plays.”

And none was bigger than the bootleg by Neighborhood News’ reigning Super Shoes Athlete of the Month.

“It definitely boosts the morale of this team,” Allen said. “Maybe now people will see us and they’ll be like, ‘Hey, they actually have heart and they’re gonna show up to play.’”

PA closes its season at Souhegan of Amherst (6-1) on Friday, Oct. 22 and Merrimack Valley (2-4) on Friday, Oct. 29.