ANDOVER — Whittier Tech needed two modes of transportation, but it reached its destination yesterday morning.
The Wildcats went through the air with quarterback Dillon Ryan and used "The Bus," burly running back Nate Allen, to survive a gritty effort from Greater Lawrence on their way to a 28-18 victory before about 800 fans at Louis E. Gleason Field.
The victory capped a perfect 11-0 regular season, wrapped up the Commonwealth Conference large school title and earned Whittier a semifinal bye and a berth in the EMass Division 4 Super Bowl.
The Wildcats will play the winner of Tuesday's East Boston vs. Bristol-Plymouth matchup in the Super Bowl Dec. 5 at Bentley College at a time yet to be determined.
Actually, the Wildcats had already earned a bye, but head coach Kevin Bradley had told his team that they must beat Greater Lawrence in order to advance straight to the Super Bowl. After all, a little extra incentive never hurts.
"We really wanted to get the bye," said Allen, a 6-foot, 225-pound cannon ball of a back, who scored on two 1-yard runs. "It was important to us."
It could be that Bradley knew that the host Reggies (7-4) would give Whittier all it could handle, and indeed they did.
Early in the second half, the game was tied at 12-12. Also, the Reggies held Whittier to under 30 points for the first time all year.
Whittier did take a 12-0 lead on two second-quarter touchdowns, the first on a 13-yard Ryan to Steve Surette pass and the second on Allen's first of two scores. The second came three plays after a short punt and facemask penalty gave the Wildcats the ball on the Greater Lawrence 18.
But Greater Lawrence narrowed the gap to 12-6 by halftime after taking over on Whittier's 44 following a botched on-side kick attempt. Standout back Joe Pizzuto (19 carries, 121 yards) carried three times for 37 yards and Juan Carlos Gomez snuck in from the one for the score.
Greater Lawrence senior Angel Rivera took a bouncing kickoff to open the second half right up the middle 58 yards to the Whittier 5-yard line and Pizzuto took it in from there to tie the game, 12-12.
The Wildcats responded with a six-play drive to take back the lead. Two passes to Steve Surette (8 catches, 116 yards, 14th TD grab of the year) netted 56 yards and a 6-yard scamper by Paul Buccos and a Ryan conversion run made it 20-12.
However, the Reggies came back again, driving 58 yards on 10 plays, the big plays being a 23-yard Pizzuto run and a 19-yard pass to Jaison Bonilla. They scored on a fourth-and-goal from the 18 when Gomez found a surprisingly wide open Lewis Mendoza open for the scoring strike, making it 20-18.
By this time, the CAC Large rivals were trading touchdowns and it was Whittier's turn. The Wildcats drove 75 yards, fueled by three completions to Surette for 41 yards, and scored when Allen bulled over from the 1.
A Ryan to Allen pass for two points made it a 10-point game, 28-18, and all but clinched the win.
"I like those situations," said Allen. "He (Bradley) has been calling me The Bus after Jerome Bettis, and I was ready."
Although the victory was closer than Bradley would have liked, he believes it could work in Whittier's favor.
"We haven't had a game like this all year and it was good to get challenged," said Bradley. "They've got a big line and they're very aggressive, but we found a way to win."
Greater Lawrence coach Tony Sarkis certainly had no complaints with his club's performance.
"We had an unbelievable effort from our seniors," said Sarkis. "They went out with all heart. ... They didn't leave anything on the field and I'm very proud of them.
"They beat us with about four big plays. That Surette is a great receiver — he's legit — and Ryan is a great quarterback."
Following the game, the Robert Fitzgerald MVP awards were presented to Ryan for Whittier and Rivera for the Reggies.
Pizzuto finished one of the most prolific seasons in area history with 2,132 rushing yards and 27 TDs.
Whittier 28, Greater Lawrence 18
Whittier (11-0):0âÇ12âÇâÇ8âÇ8 — 28
Greater Lawrence (7-4):0âÇâÇ6âÇ12âÇ0 — 18
Second Quarter
W — Steve Surette 13 pass from Dillon Ryan (run failed), 9:12
W — Nate Allen 1 run (run failed), 2:00
GL — Juan Carlos Gomez 1 run (run failed), 0:25
Third Quarter
GL — Joe Pizzuto 5 run (kick failed), 9:44
W — Paul Buccos 6 run (Ryan run), 6:43
GL — Lewis Mendoza 18 pass from Juan Carlos Gomez (run failed), 1:20
Fourth Quarter
W — Allen 1 run (Allen pass from Ryan), 5:41
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: Whittier (23-99) —Mark Asemota 1-1, Nick Ferreira 1-(-1), Don Leighton 7-26, Nate Allen 5-19, Paul Buccos 7-43, Dillon Ryan 2-11; GLT (29-136) — Joe Pizzuto 19-121, Juan Carlos Gomez 6-7, Angel Rivera 3-9, Lewis Mendoza 1-(-1)
PASSING: Whittier — Dillon Ryan 11-21-1, 181 yards; GLT — Juan Carlos Gomez 6-14-0, 64 yards
RECEIVING: Whittier — Steve Surette 8-116, Ralph Hancock 2-59, Nate Allen 1-6; GLT — Miguel Roman 1-4, Angel Rivera 2-10, Lewis Mendoza 2-31, Jaison Bonilla 1-19
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