By Michael Letendre

BRISTOL – Leading by six points at the half of its showdown against Hartford Public on Friday night, the football squad from Bristol Eastern put together another big fourth quarter effort to quell another CCC opponent.

The Lancers took a 13-6 edge into fourth quarter play but broke the game open via two big rumbles into the end zone by senior Adam Zavecz as Eastern squared up a satisfying 27-14 victory from Alumni Field in Bristol.

The Lancers moved to 2-0 on the season while the Owls, playing its first 48-minute game of the year, fell to 0-2.

Eastern wrapped up 392 yards of total offense against Hartford as multiple players got the Kingstreeters to the pay window.

On the flip side, Public was limited to just 31 total yards of offense at the half, leading to just one first down.

“I’m incredibly proud of the kids,” said Eastern coach Anthony Julius. “They’re locked in. The effort’s been really, really good. Our defensive staff has put together two excellent game plans two weeks in a row to keep opponents at bay.”

“And we’re getting a lot of contributions from a lot of players.”

Eastern back Jaiden Fore was simply sensational, taking 29 carries for 156 yards and a touchdown.

And when Fore needed a break, Adam Zavecz – the CCC Defensive Player for Week 1 of the scholastic season – made some carries and the senior sizzled for the second consecutive week.

Zavecz churned out five blistering carries for a career-high 102 yards and two touchdowns to put things out of reach.

“Man, it felt great,” said Zavecz. “I started off as a half-back but then last week, they saw me run the ball and they saw that they couldn’t take me down. So, they gave me a shot at running back and you know, when I get a shot, I’ve got to take it.” 

It was also a bit of a showcase for Eastern quarterback Kamden Laprise was truly excellent on the gridiron for the Lancers.

He connected on a slick pass to Zion Otero for a six-yard touchdown splash and threw for a career-high 134 yards on 6-of-11 passing.

“Kam did a lot of good things today,” said Julius of his quarterback. “He put the ball on the money multiple times. I think we got robbed [of a Chase Dauphinee touchdown]. Kam and Chase have been together since there were little and they obviously have a special connection.”

“He played a really great game tonight.”

Dauphinee had a career evening as well.

He racked up four catches for 120 yards which included a 79-yard reception that should have gone for 80 yards and a TD, but the receiver was ruled down at the Public one as the official – who couldn’t keep up with Dauphinee – was severely trailing the play.

Eastern collected 15 total first downs and defensively, Public was only able to move the chains when it was too late in the game.

The Owls’ offense was truly bottled up by the likes of Mikey Sherrill (three tackles for losses), Hunter Wells – who was everywhere the ball went – Bryce Bacote, turning in an interception during first half play, Alexander Corvo, Sovannara Nuon and Ryan and Adam Zavecz.

Big stops were also made by Randy DeNoto, Lincoln Bashaw, Ryan Corvo, Jacob Rogers, Dauphinee and Fore. 

Those efforts helped fuel the Lancers into the half and third quarter play as the Owls were stopped time after time.

Once Eastern nabbed a 6-0 edge just 5:14 into the game and carried that six-point edge into the break, the Kingstreeters’ defense put the work in to limit Hartford’s offense.  

“It was a defensive operated game,” said Zavecz. “We were already winning going into the half, so we knew if we keep them from scoring, we’ve already won the game. We just had to lock in.”

Eastern’s first series saw Fore make all seven plays – smash mouth rushes through Public’s line – for 50 total yards and his four-yard scoring plunge made it 6-0 midway through the first period.

The Lancers scored again on their second series and this time, a seven play, 48-yard drive was punctuated by a six-yard sweet jump pass from Laprise to Otero for a touchdown strike – leading to a 13-0 edge with 10:05 left to play in the half.

Bacote later made his pickoff play, running it back for 21 yards, and after trading punts, it appeared the Lancers were on the verge of another touchdown with less than 15 seconds remaining before the break.

However, a Laprise pass on a first-and-goal situation from the Public 10 saw the throw get popped up into the air and when the ball was coming down, the Owls’ Shawn Johnson caught it and sprinted downfield for a 90-yard touchdown and on the extra point, Eastern was still in charge but leading by just six points (13-7).

Out of the third quarter gate, the home team turned the ball over on downs, but the defense forced another Hartford punt.

And with 3:52 to go in the third, Fore started the set with a few rushes before it was Adam Zavecz’s turn with the ball.

On the first play of the fourth period, at the Public 7, Zavecz was in motion and Fore – in a reversal of positions – made a tremendous block on the play.

From there, on open Zavecz simply sprinted to the left and barreled over a helpless Hartford defender as his seven-yard sprint into the goal – and extra point by Gavin Damboise – gave Eastern a 20-7 lead with 11:52 showing on the clock.

“We came out with a couple different sets in the second half,” said Julius. “We had some success and some players really stepped up. We had Jaiden Fore who is normally our bell cow, stepping in to be our blocker for his teammate Adam on one touchdown.” 

A four-and-out followed, courtesy of the Eastern defense, which gave the duo of Fore and Zavecz another drive in which Public was simply overwhelmed.

A three play, 74-yard set saw Eastern stuck on its own 27 via a first-and-20 situation before the crafty Zavecz was unleashed.

On the third play of the drive, Zavecz took the ball and ran right into the arms of Public’s Amir Cousins in the middle of the line.

Cousins failed to wrap Zavecz up and the senior simply changed direction, attacked the line from the right side, found a huge seam and sprinted down the Public sideline for a tremendous 73-yard TD rush that put the game out of reach at 27-7 with 7:07 to play.

“Adam then breaks a ridiculous run to put us up by three scores,” said Julius of the play. 

The Owls never relented, scoring on a 12-play drive that saw QB Kalil Barno find Kamal Maxwell for a six-yard touchdown reception to trim the deficit to 27-14 with 3:06 left.

But Eastern handled the ensuing onside kick and eventually pinned Public deep in its own territory on fourth down when the final horn sounded as the Lancers were winners once again – scooping up a big 14-point victory to close out its two-game home stand in style.

“There was just a lot of unselfishness on the team right now,” said Julius. “It’s a good feeling and I’m proud of the kids. I’m happy for them to be 2-0.” 

Bristol Eastern Football – CCC Tier III/IV Football Challenge

BRISTOL EASTERN 27, HARTFORD PUBLIC 14

from Alumni Field, Bristol

Hartford Public (0-2) 0 7 0 6 – 13

Bristol Eastern (1-0) 0 13 0 14 – 27

SCORING

First Period

BE – Jaiden Fore 4 run (no kick), 5:14

Second Period

BE – Zion Otero 6 catch by Kamden Laprise (Gavin Damboise kick), 10:05

HP – Shawn Johnson 90 interception return (Eric Williams kick), 0:00 

Fourth Period

BE – Adam Zavecz 7 run (Damboise kick), 11:52

BE – Zavecz 73 run (Damboise kick), 7:07

HP – Kamal Maxwell 6 catch by Kalil Barno (failed run), 3:06

Individual Statistics

RUSHING – Hartford Public: Kalil Barno 3-7, Edwin Rodriguez 12-38, Eric Williams 2-8, Dayshawn Smith 1-(minus-2);Bristol Eastern: Jaiden Fore 29-156, Adam Zavecz 5-102.

PASSING – Hartford Public: Barno 10-for-22, 110 yards; Bristol Eastern: Kamden Laprise 6-for-11, 134 yards.

RECEPTIONS – Hartford Public: Kamal Maxwell 2-10, Jaiden Booth 2-36, Linkin Pham 3-33, Rodriguez 1-25, Williams 2-6; Bristol Eastern: Chase Dauphinee 4-120, Zion Otero 1-6, Fore 1-8.

Records: Bristol Eastern 2-0 overall; Hartford Public 0-2.