SOUTH HADLEY — The pocket crumbled around Owen Sedlacek almost immediately. Belchertown’s senior quarterback drifted away from pressure to his left and scanned for an open receiver.
There were some, but a better option presented itself on fourth down and 10 from the 20. Sedlacek sprinted toward the left sideline Thursday and pump faked to shift Easthampton’s defense. As he kept running toward the corner, the Orioles receivers became blockers. Sedlacek darted in front of Easthampton defensive back Berthanso Tauscher at the 5-yard line and strutted into the end zone with 6 minutes, 48 seconds remaining in the first quarter after a 20-yard touchdown.
“That’s one of the best feelings ever. It’s almost like you get hit with a shot of adrenaline,” Belchertown senior lineman Hunter Englert said.
Belchertown followed up an opening defensive stand with that opening drive touchdown. The Orioles got one more big play, and the defense did the rest in a 14-0 win over the Eagles to end the Fall II football season.
Easthampton went three and out on its next series. Sam Winston only needed one play to make it a two-score game. He went 57 yards up the right sideline largely untouched to push the Orioles lead to two scores.
“I congratulated my line and said thank you after that. I made one move and saw the sideline,” Winston said. “I’m a humble guy, but I knew I’d be able to break it on the sideline and took off.”
Winston finished with 159 yards rushing on just 17 carries in his final game in black and orange. He went over the century mark 1:02 into the second quarter aided by a 39-yard burst on the first play.
That ended the scoring, as Belchertown’s defense stifled and stole from the Eagles. The Orioles recovered four fumbles, which became a specialty of theirs this spring. Belchertown coach Ed Wyzik said the Orioles recovered 25 fumbles in five games.
“I take that to practicing and working on fumble strips. They’ve got a good eye for the ball,” Wyzik said.
Easthampton hadn’t played since its season-opening win at Smith Vocational on March 16. All of the Eagles other games were canceled for COVID-19 protocols or against schools located in red classified towns, which Easthampton wouldn’t allow them to play.
The Eagles were out of sorts. They had two false starts on their first three plays and five on the first few drives. Easthampton didn’t pick up a first down until 3:50 into the second quarter.
“I knew we were going to be rusty. I knew the first half was going to be rough. Defensively we played well except for two plays,” Easthampton coach Matt Bean said. “Offensively, the lack of playing just hurt us. We couldn’t get the execution going.”
The Eagles defense kept them in the game for its entirety. Tauscher snagged an interception with less than a minute left in the first half that snuffed out a Belchertown red zone opportunity.
Their offense settled into the game by the fourth quarter and found success in the screen game and running Nathan Hogan. He ripped off a 16-yard run to get Easthampton into the red zone with a little over five minutes remaining, and the Eagles faced a fourth and five from the 8.
“Nate Hogan was running really hard. The off tackle stuff was working,” Bean said. “We couldn’t sustain it. We couldn’t execute it.”
Another false start made it fourth and 10, removing any mystery from Easthampton’s play call. After a quick shuffle to his left, Eagles quarterback Liam Burke floated a pass toward Keith Cudworth in the corner of the end zone.
Belchertown corner Derek Rose boxed him out and knocked the pass away, forcing a turnover on downs.
“The majority of that group are seniors, and they know that’s it. Some guys never play again,” Wyzik said. “They gave everything they got.”
Belchertown intercepted an Easthampton pass on the next drive then punted after three plays. An Easthampton player held a Belchertown player on the ground after the play, then players from both sides left the bench areas and delivered late hits to players from the opposing team with 2 minutes, 18 seconds left. Coaches from both sides separated their teams as an Easthampton player stayed on the ground and received attention from the athletic trainer.
The Eagles faced fourth down and an eternity, and a Burke pass fell incomplete on fourth down. Winston ripped off one more long run, and the Orioles finished out the clock and their season.
“I didn’t think this year was going to be good, but it turned out to be one of the most fun years of my life,” Englert said. “Every day was a fun day. Even with some of the rules and stuff, it was like a child on a playground.”
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter
@kylegrbwsk.