Bristol Central rallies, ekes out victory over South Windsor; Blair scores three TDs

Posted By: Staff September 17, 2022

Bristol Central rallied from 11 points down then held on for dear life to pull out a 31-30 win over South Windsor Friday night.

Tre Blair scored three touchdowns, rushed for 139 yards and caught two passes for 37 more to lead the attack for the Rams. Oscar Kuzniar kicked a first quarter field goal of 30 yards that proved to be the eventual difference in the score as the teams traded touchdowns.

The Rams held on to a 3-0 lead through most of the first half, thanks in part to a key interception by Anthony Paulino. The Bobcats scored after two long plays late in the half to lead 8-3 at the break.

A defensive lapse led to a 63-yard catch and run score by South Wndsor’s Joe Bemis, putting the Rams in a 14-3 deficit midway through the third period.

Central cut the gap to 14-9 on a 24 yards pass from Nik Salinas to Blair and then took the lead for good when Blair scored on a 14-yard run with seven and a half minutes to play.

The final seven minutes saw a flurry of scores. Central’s Aiden Lamarre intercepted a pass by South Wndsor quarterback Ethan LaGuardia to setup the Rams at the Bobcats 10-yard line and Blair took it in for the score. A key two-point conversion run by Geovannie Colon put Central up by nine, making it a two-score margin.

South Windsor quickly cut it to 23-22 on a 70-yard run but the Rams countered after Blair broke free for 49 yard to the South Wndsor seven with two minutes to play. Blair scored and Salinas passed tp Carmelo Thompson for two points and a comfortable 31-22 edge.

The lead quickly became less comfortable when South Windsor struck quickly on two long pass plays, but the Rams were able to cover the onside kick attempt to run out the lcock and preserve their first win of the young season.

Blair led the Central offense. Salinas ran for 90 yards and completed four of 10 passes for 72 yards and a touchdown. Paulino and Lamarre had interceptions and the Rams also recovered a fumble for a 3-0 edge in the turnover department.

Central will step outside of the CCC next week when they travel south and west to take on FCIAC opponent Wilton in a first-ever gridiron meeting between the two schools.

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