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The attitude in the Berlin huddle differed from its sideline, however, according to running back Chris Laroche.
"We just know what we have to do," Laroche said of critical situations upon which the game hinges. "We’ve been in those the past few weeks."
Berlin (6-3, 6-2 Nutmeg) turned to its signature running game. P.J. Sanzo started the drive with a pair of quarterback draws from the shotgun formation, then the Redcoats turned to Laroche to soften up the Plainville defense. Four consecutive Laroche carries to the center of the line put the ball at Plainville’s 24.
With the clock under three minutes, Sanzo sent Joel Hartunian on a sweep, and the shifty senior covered the remaining real estate, giving Berlin a 26-14 win over a game Plainville club.
"We just ran the ball at them," said Berlin coach Al Pelligrinelli of the game’s crucial drive, and summarized his club’s thinking before the drive. "We were up 19-7, and thought we had a little bit of breathing room. They came up, scored, and the momentum is shifted their way. And you had to do something to answer that."
It was a night of responses as Plainville (2-7, 2-6) responded to Berlin’s 10-play opening drive with Justin Fangiullo shooting the gap to stuff Laroche (27 carries, game-high 164 yards) on a fourth down play at the Blue Devils’ 20.
Plainville then drove to Berlin’s 19 before Joel Hartunian snared his 24th career interception (one off the state record) at his own 7-yard line.
Starting at their own 10, the Redcoats used the same formula they used on their fourth quarter drive. Sanzo started with a run out of the shotgun before Laroche had four carries, the final one covering 28 yards, and putting the ball at Plainville’s 38.
Hartunian (12-90 and 2 TDs) took an inside handoff and ran a sweep to the left for the touchdown that made it 7-0.
"It’s just a basic Wing-T sweep," Pelligrinelli said. "You have to execute it, and I thought our linemen did a better job tonight. They gave us a little bit of room to run and knocked people off the ball."
Berlin appeared to garner a comfortable lead midway through the third period when Robert Dornfried kicked the first of his two field goals, a 38-yarder, to make it 10-0. But Plainville responded with Allen Niedzwiecki returning the ensuing kickoff 40 yards to the Berlin 43.
"He’s been an excellent returner for us," said first-year Plainville head coach Mack Scott. "But he always gets tackled by the last guy or the kicker."
It mattered little, however, when Rob Lessard found Will Hungerford (14 carries, 80 yards, 2 catches, 23 yards) deep down the left sideline past the Berlin secondary, cutting the gap to 10-7.
After a Dornfried field goal made it 13-7, Plainville, which had been punting the ball out of bounds all night, kicked to Berlin, and Laroche made the Blue Devils pay with an 18-yard return to Plainville’s 40. Three plays later, Laroche made it 19-7 with an 11-yard run.
"We weren’t getting enough yardage on our punts," said Scott, who feared Berlin’s return game. "So we had to let them try to return one."
When Lee, who also had an interception, grabbed the ball at Berlin’s 45, setting up the touchdown that would make it 19-14, Plainville appeared poised for the win.
"They just ran the ball down our throat," Scott said, noting his team was on the field a lot (33 defensive plays in the second half to Berlin’s 21). "We just couldn’t do that much about it."
