Coming off a major victory against their rival, Bishop Feehan, the Spartans were unable to keep the momentum alive during their playoff match against Ashland High School. But, despite the setback, the team is ready to bounce back.

Even after elimination from the MIAA Division 5 South Sectional, Stang has three more non-playoff games culminating with their Thanksgiving home game, a rematch against Bishop Feehan.

During the playoff, Bishop Stang’s defense was strong early on in the first quarter. While Jeff Chicca successfully intercepted the ball as Ashland neared the end zone, Ashland beat Stang back to the 30-yard line before scoring the first touchdown of the night.

Ashland’s momentum carried well into the second quarter with another touchdown early on. Minutes later, Ashland saw another opportunity and threw the ball to the end zone, but Stang’s Jordan Mello interfered with the pass.

As the quarter drew to a close, Ashland’s Donovan Prozinski ran with the ball, setting his team up for another push toward the end zone. The teams straddled the end zone in an intense standoff with only two minutes remaining. The Spartans were unable to stop their rivals’ charge forward, and Ashland scored again.

In the last minute, Ashland picked up another touchdown, bringing the score to 0-28 at halftime.

The Spartans came back swinging in the third quarter, taking possession of the ball early on. Matt Golden threw to Justin Lopes near the eight minute mark, paving the way for Golden to score Bishop Stang’s first touchdown of the game.

Ashland gained control soon after, and, in the final minute of the third quarter, Ashland picked up another touchdown.

During the fourth quarter, Ashland picked up another three points from a field goal around the 30-yard line. Bishop Stang couldn’t catch up thereafter, and the final score of the playoff was 6-37, with Ashland the victor.

After the game, head coach Ryan Sylvia said the Spartans couldn’t match Ashland’s runners. He remained optimistic about the team’s ability to shrug off the score.

“Our guys usually bounce back. No one’s happy after a loss. You always come back and work a little harder,” said Sylvia.

“We’ve been on a little winning streak, feeling good about ourselves. This is a reality check for us,” he said.

Linemen Sean Donovan, a senior at Bishop Stang, was taken out of the game early in the second quarter after several blows to the head. As he watched the game from the sideline, he, too, remained optimistic about the Spartan’s season.

“A lot of people are saying we have strong runners – we can definitely move the ball. But everyone is concerned with our line because we lost a lot of our linemen,” said Donovan. “We came out and surprised everybody. We went 6-1 up until this game. We beat our biggest rival, Bishop Feehan, which was a huge surprise for us.”

He said his team has been changing up its strategy this season, and he’s been impressed with the results. Donovan said that, even though his team wouldn’t qualify for the playoffs, he’s still looking forward to playing more games this season.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game, but we prepared, and we’re doing what we can,” said Donovan. “Nobody’s getting down on themselves, which is great.”

Bishop Stang will play against Apponequet Regional on Friday, Nov. 6, away at 7 p.m. On Friday, Nov. 13, they will play at home against Dover-Sherborn High School. The Nov. 26 Thanksgiving game will be at home against Bishop Feehan.