DUXBURY — Duxbury began its football season with a rocky opening, but has found its groove at just the right time.
Senior captain Brady Rhinesmith completed 14-of-18 passes Friday, finishing with 305 yards and four touchdowns as the fourth-seeded Dragons advanced to the Div. 4 semifinals again with a 38-14 romp of No. 5 Burlington.
“We knew they were a good team coming in here,” Rhinesmith said. “We just stuck to the game plan and executed the best we can. We were lucky enough to come out with the win. All of us wanted it really badly. You could tell from Monday on. This was the game we had circled, and obviously, we came out on top.”
Using its signature single-wing offense, Burlington (9-1) attempted some trickery right out of the gate. However, the Red Devils were foiled as Ryan Brooks fired a halfback pass up the field. He was picked off by Dragons’ senior Lucas Falls, as Duxbury (7-3) took over at its own 24. Moments later, Rhinesmith heaved a pass for the end zone. Jack Carney hauled it in for a 38-yard touchdown reception, and the Dragons led 7-0 with 5:17 left in the opening frame.
Later on in the second quarter, the Red Devils decided to go for it on fourth down from their own 39. Brooks was tackled short of the line to gain, setting up Duxbury with great field position. Facing a fourth down sequence of their own, the Dragons capitalized as Rhinesmith took another deep shot. Carney corralled it, then escaped a would-be tackler on his way to a 39-yard touchdown reception. In a flash, it was a 14-0 contest with 5:22 left in the half.
Burlington would respond, as Brooks broke off a 53-yard rush to set his team up in the red zone. The star running back found paydirt with a one-yard rush two plays later, as the Red Devils trimmed it to a 14-6 game.
Duxbury was able to make it a two-possession game at the end of the second quarter, as Gavin Hammond drilled a 24-yard field goal to provide his team a 17-6 advantage.
Duxbury received the second-half kickoff and simply kept on rolling. The Dragons staged a methodical drive into Burlington territory. Then, Rhinesmith decided to take another Hail Mary shot. This time, the senior captain hit Nate Read for a 28-yard touchdown pass, pushing the lead to 24-6 with 6:58 to go in the stanza.
Shortly thereafter, Duxbury forced another turnover on downs and took over at its 45. The Red Devils then attempted a blitz. Rhinesmith dumped a screen off to Jake Falls, and the captain slipped away from a tackler and took off for a 53-yard touchdown reception. By that point, the Dragons were in complete command, up 31-6 with 2:42 left in the third.
Cole Barberia put the finishing touches on the victory for Duxbury, scampering for an 11-yard touchdown run with 6:35 left in regulation to make it 38-6.
Sammy Fernandes accounted for Burlington’s final score with a 57-yard touchdown rush.
It is the seventh straight trip to a state semifinal for Duxbury, and its fifth consecutive at the Div. 4 level. The Dragons will face a longtime nemesis in Scituate. In four out of the last five seasons, the Patriot League rivals have met in the Div. 4 Super Bowl, splitting titles.
“We’re going to literally come in, work our tails off, trust the process and not worry about the result,” said Duxbury coach Matt Landolfi. “We understand that not a lot of people are picking us. We’ll see.”
