Whalers mount HEROIC DRIVE to outlast Tri County, 13-12, on last play of game
BY JACK MOLLOY CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The two minute drill. It has been made famous around here by New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Junior quarterback Chris Welch brought the two minute drill to Nantucket on Friday afternoon, directing a game- winning touchdown drive with 1:43 to go. Welch capped it off with a five yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Jordan Ferreira as time expired, giving the Whalers its second straight win, 13-12, over Tri County Regional in Mayflower Small League action.

PHOTOS BY MICHAEL GALVIN/The Independent

Late in the fourth quarter, Nantucket forced Tri County to punt and the ball was downed on the Nantucket 39 at the 1:43 mark. The game-winning drive began with an eightyard completion from Welch to Ferreira. Junior running back Hunter Day followed with a six-yard run for a first down. The Welch-Ferreira connection clicked again, this time a 32-yard completion to the 15-yard line. The duo completed a 10-yard pass to bring the ball to the 5 and a Welch spike of the ball then stopped the clock with just 3.2 seconds left. Despite drawing a double team, Ferreira headed for the corner of the end zone, the then doubled back across the center of the end zone where Welch found him, hitting him in the numbers and sending the Whaler fans home happy with a 13-12 Homecoming win.

.Nantucket's homecoming game against Tri County was a thriller won by the Whalers with no time left on the clock. Jamison Viera (42), above, picks up first half yardage as senior co-captain Tomas Smaliorius (77) and senior center Nigel Koester (67) pave the way. Left, Jordan Ferreira, who caught the game-winning touchdown, leaps for one of his six catches that netted 110 yards.

"It's probably one of the greatest comebacks since I've been here," said head coach Vito Capizzo, who has been here, incidentally, since 1964. "In the last two games we've been playing as a team and found the will to win."

Welch threw for two touchdowns and 136 yards, hitting on seven of 13 pass attempts, and the Nantucket defense held Tri County to 44 yards passing. Ferreira had six catches for 110 yards and two touchdowns for the Whalers. Junior running back Hunter Day rushed for 47 yards on 15 carries while sophomore fullback Jamison Viera had 26 yards on five carries. Indicative of a one-point game, the Whalers had 203 total yards on offense and Tri County finished with 211 yards, including 167 on the ground for the day.

Ferreira opened the scoring when he caught an 18- yard pass from Welch with 1:56 remaining in the first quarter to cap a seven play, 52-yard drive. Junior Josh Butler kicked the extra point, and after a scoreless second quarter, Nantucket led, 7-0, at the break.

In the second half, a Nantucket fumble gave Tri County the ball on the 14 yard line. Peter Beckwith ran for the threeyard touchdown, but the Nantucket defense stopped the conversion rush to maintain its lead, 7-6. Beckwith put Tri County ahead, 12-7, when he added his second touchdown of the third quarter with a 2-yard rush, but the kick failed, setting the stage for the last minute heroics.

"I'm glad for the kids," Capizzo said. "This will give us some confidence with two games to go."

Nantucket will be looking for its third straight win at Diman Voke on Saturday at 1 p.m. Then the following weekend the Whalers travel to Martha's Vineyard in the annual Island Cup game, also at 1 p.m. Boat tickets for the trip to the Vineyard are available in the Nantucket

High School main office. I