Farmington’s Brian Buono (38) finds little room to run in Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day game in Farmington. The Blue Devils beat Farmington, 32-7.
FARMINGTON, Nov. 27 – This was a game that they will be talking about for years to come. Plainville’s 32-7 win over Farmington to win the Olde Canal Cup trophy on Thanksgiving morning in conditions that were challenging for both schools.
The new synethic turf field at Farmington High was covered in about four inches of snow and ice from Wednesday’s storm. Parents from Farmington and Plainville tried to shovel off the field but could only shovel snow off the sidelines, most of the lines every five yards and the end zone lines. About a quarter of the field was free of snow.
The game was slow and methodical in the snow. Once the players got onto the cleared portion of the field, you could see the speed of the game pick up.
Plainville (6-5) ran for 270 yards and four touchdowns to win its fifth straight game and end the season on a high note. The Blue Devils began the season with a 1-5 record. Dante Correa ran for a game-high 168 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries. Teammate Jaeden Ferrara ran for 71 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.
Farmington (2-9) has struggled to score points this season and this Thanksgiving game was no different. The Indians put up just seven points on the board thanks to a 42-yard touchdown run from Brian Buono in the second quarter. Farmington ran for just another 64 yards.
“It was wild,” Farmington coach Chris Machol said. “There were portions of the field that were completely clear (about 40 yards primarily in front of the Plainville bench) and in other portions there were six inches of snow. It was like an obstacle course out there.”
After both teams discovered that running plays down the middle of the field was a challenge, they began to work toward the sidelines. “It was a race to the bare patches on the field,” Machol said. “We got one guy free and they got two. It was the first guy to get to the green turf.”
Once, a player got to a cleared section of the field, they were off to the races. No one was going to catch them running through the snow.
Parents and volunteers from both schools got to the field early Friday morning and worked hard to clear the field. They simply didn’t have enough time to clear the entire field.
Plainville took a 6-0 lead when Correa got free down the far sideline and onto a clear portion of the field, racing downfield for a 88-yard touchdown run with 3:09 left in the first quarter. The extra point try was blocked.
The Blue Devils added to the lead on a four-yard run by Ferrara with 11:06 left in the second quarter. Ferrara was stopped near the two but kept driving and made it into the end zone. Again, the extra point try was blocked and the Blue Devils had a 12-0 lead.
Farmington cut the lead to five points when Buono got through a hole in the line, turned left and got onto a cleared portion of the field and zipped 42 yards for a touchdown with 3:09 left in the second quarter. Sean Dunleavy’s extra point cut the Blue Devils lead to 12-7.
But Plainville got the ball back and quick drove in for another score with Correa scoring from the four-yard line with 0:45 seconds left in the half. The two-point conversion run failed and the Blue Devils led 18-7 at the half.
“We had trouble with the same things we’ve had trouble with all year,” Machol said. “We had trouble making big plays on third down. And we allowed big plays on third and fourth down. You can’t allow that and be successful.”
Correa’s 88-yard run came on a third down and long play. Ferrara’s touchdown that gave Plainville a 12-0 lead came on a fourth down and one play.
Plainville pulled away in the second half with a pair of touchdowns in the second half on an 18-yard touchdown pass from Jon Lindgren to Corey McKission and a nine-yard run by Correa in the fourth quarter. The Blue Devil defense kept Farmington’s offense in check.
Sections of the Farmington High field were clear Thursday and others were choked with snow.
Plainville’s Jaeden Ferrara (33) tries to gain yardage in Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day game in Farmington.
Farmington’s T.J. Nanos (10) tries to get outside on a kickoff return.
Farmington’s Steve Buono ran for a team-high 94 yards and a touchdown Thursday against Plainville.
NOTES: The win ties the overall series between the two schools that began in 1930. Each team has won 25 games. There was also one tie. … It was the first Plainville win in the Thanksgiving series that began in 2011.
Plainville 32, Farmington 7
At Farmington
Plainville 6 12 8 6 — 32
Farmington 0 7 0 0 — 7
First quarter
P: Dante Correa 88 run (kick blocked), 3:09
Second quarter
P: Jaeden Ferrara 4 run (kick blocked), 11:06
F: Brian Buono 42 run (Sean Dunleavy kick), 3:09
P: Correa 4 run (pass fails), 0:45
Third quarter
P: Corey McKisson 18 pass from Jon Lindgren (Ferrara run), 6:35
Fourth quarter
P: Correa 9 run (run fails), 3:15
Individual statistics
RUSHING: Farmington – Buono 16-94, Andy Goss 1-3, Jon Henry 1-4, Brooks Mihalek 3-3, Jack Sucato 1-0, Connor Martin 1-0; Plainville – Jon Lindgren 9-30, Dante Correa 20-168, Bryan Wojcik 1-1, Jaeden Ferrara 18-71
PASSING: Farmington – Jon Henry 6-17-1, 44, Brooks Mihalek 1-5-0, 4; Connor Martin 0-1, J.T. McLaughlin 1-2-0, 6; Plainville – Jon Lindgren 2-6-0, 32
RECEIVING: Farmington – T.J. Nanos 4-28, Sean Dunleavy 2-13, J.T. McLaughlin 2-15; Plainville – Corey McKisson 1-18, Jaeden Ferrara 1-14
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