On a warm and windy Halloween afternoon, throwing the ball was a scary proposition for the Newton North and Milton football teams.
Despite a poor passing game, the Tigers managed to muster just enough big plays to defeat Milton at Newton South High.
No play was bigger than senior wide receiver Ben Kiley's 67-yard punt return for a touchdown at the end of the opening quarter, which set the tone for the 18-6 Bay State Conference victory.
Kiley said he almost didn't field the punt that put the Tigers up 12-0.
``I was debating whether to catch it,'' he said. ``It bounced at the last minute, and I took it and ran down the sideline and got great blocking from my teammates. Special teams make a game. Whenever you score on special teams, you get an advantage over the other team.''
The victory marked the first time this season North won consecutive games, after beginning the season 1-5.
``We got some energy from last week,'' North coach Peter Capodilupo said, referring to a 34-12 victory against Braintree. ``When you win, you get energy. We had good practices this week. The kids worked hard.''
Last week's victory against Braintree came a week after a demoralizing 27-0 loss to Weymouth.
``We had enough,'' Kiley said. ``We all got together and said we were not going to let it happen again. We took a stand and became more together. We did hit rock bottom. I feel that's the reason why we did so well. We hit rock bottom and realized there was nowhere to go but up.
"Now we've got two wins in a row, and it gives us confidence for the rest of the season. Hopefully, we'll use this energy and have these wins carry over to the next games.''
Going into the Braintree win, the Tigers' five loses came to teams with a combined 27-3 record, including BSC powers Walpole and Needham. Milton fell to 2-6 with the defeat.
``We were playing ranked teams in the beginning of the season and got nervous,'' Kiley said. ``We go into the game confident - that's why we've come out successful.''
Kiley's punt return wasn't the only big play of the day for North. Hao-Kai Wu scored on a 30-yard sweep on the Tigers' first offensive play from scrimmage to put North up 6-0.
The point-after kick was blocked, but junior fullback Ben Clark scored with just under seven minutes left in the opening half. The two-point conversion failed, and the Tigers took a 18-0 edge into the half.
``That we came in poised is the main thing,'' Kiley said. ``We were focused. The better your focus is, the better you do offensively. We were definitely focused today.''
In the final quarter, North managed the clock well and closed out the game.
``It was calm and collected. It was easy,'' junior quarterback Isaiah Penn said. ``All we had to do was run the ball out, and we were fine.''
Kiley's return remained the talk of the day.
``That really helps, when special teams scores,'' Capodilupo said. ``Special players make special plays on special days. Today was a special day. It keeps our hope alive for a winning season, which has always been our goal. We're very happy with that.
``The kids deserve a lot of credit. A lot of teams, when they are down 1-5, would've folded.''
