On Friday, September 25th, Malden High’s Football team walked away from MacDonald Stadium with a thrilling 28-26 victory against the Lowell Catholic Crusaders, improving their season record to 2-1.
The first quarter remained scoreless, relentless and slow. Lowell Catholic started the game with possession and controlled much of the first quarter, keeping the Tornados off the scoreboard as both teams pushed through the opening quarter.
Although Lowell Catholic controlled possession for much of the first quarter, Malden’s defense managed to keep Lowell Catholic from turning their early possession into touchdowns, ending the first quarter 0-0.
The scoreless first quarter, sparked the start of Malden’s offensive momentum. With Junior Captain Jayden McGuffie scoring for the Tornados twice and, junior Wide Receiver Nathan Schonton adding another touchdown on a pass from senior Quarterback Joshua Bly, Malden was able to demonstrate their quick ability to adapt.
McGuffie’s second quarter production helped Malden establish their 20-point lead against Lowell Catholic. An important defensive play made by junior Jaiden Gonzalez, who delivered a big hit on Lowell’s Crusader #3, proved to be a vital play from the defense.
The Tornados appeared to have control of the game, but Lowell Catholic mounted a comeback in the second half. A major factor was the Crusaders’ ability to recover two onside kicks in a row.
The successful recoveries gave Lowell Catholic a strong field position and additional possessions, preventing Malden’s defense from having the opportunities to block the Crusaders’ points that they were putting on the board.
“Lowell Catholic definitely gave us a run for our money, but we were able to step up in the last couple of seconds,” expressed Gonzalez.
The onside kicks allowed Lowell Catholic to repeatedly gain possession and immediately put that pressure back on the Golden Tornados to block those points.
“We should’ve blown them out with the way we were initially playing. It was just mistakes that we need to work on, but it’s definitely going to lead us to playing better when we do fix them,” emphasized Schonton.
Malden’s offense created opportunities downfield while defense repeatedly had to react as Lowell Catholic’s offense moved the ball. As the comeback developed, the game became increasingly tight, with both teams fighting for every possession.
As the fourth quarter continued, Lowell Catholic’s comeback led the score to be only 2 points behind the Golden Tornados. McGuffie’s third touchdown performance overall maintained Malden’s 20-point advantage regardless of the Crusaders’ comeback. He also rushed for 212 yards, stated The Boston Globe.
Senior Captain Joshua Dionne described the game as a team effort: “The team’s overall performance was great; it was a team effort all the way through. Of course there are things to clean up, but we showed up when it counted.”
Dionne described Lowell Catholic’s comeback as an example of how quickly momentum can change during a game: “With Lowell Catholic quickly catching up, it showed the team what we needed to work on and how quickly momentum of a game can switch.”
Even after Lowell Catholic’s return, Malden held on to their slight lead and walked away with another staggering win. The game gave the Tornados another victory while also showing the team what it needs to improve on as the season moves forward.
McGuffie’s three-touchdown performance maintained Malden’s advantage regardless of the Crusaders’ comeback.
The next game to catch their performance live will be on October 2nd at MacDonald Stadium against Everett High School, the Crimson Tide.
About the Author
