BELCHERTOWN — Nolan Otto rolled to his left to escape the Ludlow pass rush. Less than 30 seconds remained, and the Belchertown football team trailed Ludlow by 6 on Thursday at home.
Otto had thrown an incompletion on the previous snap but connected on the two prior passes to gain 40 yards and move into Ludlow territory.
The Belchertown senior quarterback pointed to a wide-open Landon Andre approaching the sidelines. After Otto released the ball, Andre slipped in his pattern. The ball appeared headed out of bounds or harmlessly toward the turf until Ludlow linebacker Michael Gilrein dove at full stretch to pick it off and seal a 12-6 Ludlow victory.
It terminated a Belchertown drive that began at its own 25 with 1:24 remaining. The Orioles defense forced a Ludlow punt with a strong defensive stand and some help from Gilrein. He ran out of bounds on a sweep after a five-yard gain on second down to let Belchertown preserve a timeout. The Orioles then stuffed him on third and five with a timeout to stop the clock and force a punt.
What an amazing catch by the @Lionathletics senior to seal the win https://t.co/IqIySmpQSg pic.twitter.com/On1wF1ZpLq
— Kyle Grabowski👑 (@kylegrbwsk) September 24, 2021
“Our defense has been carrying us all year,” Belchertown coach Dan McCarthy said.
It set up the Orioles’ go-ahead score in the first half. Belchertown (1-2) held Ludlow out of the end zone with 6:12 remaining in the fourth quarter on fourth and goal from the 4. That series started at first and goal from the 1.
“That was huge because it gave us the tone to turn around and do something better,” Belchertown junior Chris Daskam said.
The Orioles took over on their own 5, then Otto lost two yards on a run. That just gave Daskam more room to work. After an incompletion, Otto lofted a long pass to Daskam down the right side. Daskam kept outrunning defenders and scored a 97-yard touchdown to put Belchertown up 6-0 with 4:41 to halftime.
“Chris is the ultimate dual threat guy,” McCarthy said. “You send that kid on a route, you give him the ball and space, he’s going to make a play.”
Belcherotwn’s lead lasted 4:41. After the team’s traded punts following the touchdown pass, Ludlow quarterback Anthony Emco drove the Lions to the Belchertown 21 with 10.9 seconds left. They faced fourth and 20 after a sack.
Emco lofted a pass to the left corner of the end zone, and Michael Sternowski brought it in for the game-tying 21-yard score as the halftime buzzer sounded.
“It hurts, but you still got two quarters of ball to show what’s up,” McCarthy said. “It brings you down as a team, but were were getting the kick, so we could have made up for it.”
The Orioles fumbled their opening possession of the second half, and Ludlow drove 54 yard for what became the game-winning touchdown. A Belchertown offsides gave the Lions a first down. On third down, Emco found a wide open Gilrein on the right side of the field for a 15-yard score with 4:42 remaining in the third.
Belchertowns next three drives ended with an interception from a tipped ball, a turnover on downs and Gilrein’s game-ending pick.
Otto finished 10-of-22 for 189 yards passing. Daskam gained 111 yards receiving on just four catches.
“Penalties kill us,” McCarthy said. “I want the kids to buy into the system because the plays are there,
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.