Thrill of victory: Durfee football snaps long losing skid on Friday
FALL RIVER — The smiles on the Durfee sideline told the story Friday night.
Hilltopper senior captain Nick Wood quietly said through his face mask, "This feels good."
Senior lineman Josh Yentz did an internet search Friday morning in class to see when his team last won. He came up with 673 days.
As the clock ran down to triple zeros, the excitement grew louder and louder from the bench area.
Yes, the losing streak is history.
"It has been a tough stretch here for the last year and a half," Durfee head coach Taylor Brown said after his team came away with a convincing 43-13 victory over winless Nauset. "I'm proud of the kids and happy for them. They will be able to enjoy this win and have fun."
The last time the Hilltoppers tasted victory was on Thanksgiving Day 2021.
"It exciting, finally," Durfee senior running back Eric Lucas said after rushing for a career-high 171 yards on 21 carries and scoring a pair of touchdowns. "We haven't won a game in (nearly) two years. It's exciting."
Another player who played a big role in the victory was KJ Strong.
The senior quarterback came on in the second quarter and helped lead the Hilltoppers to 43 unanswered points. Strong threw for a touchdown, rushed for another and converted a two-point conversion.
Friday Night special: Week 4 predictions and outlooks for Fall River area teams
"It was just great to see the guys come together; finally bring home a dub (win), especially at home," Strong said. "This proves that now we can compete with these teams. We may have some ups and downs, but we can compete."
The Warriors got on the board first just before the end of the first quarter when Brendan Peno connected with Evan Archer from five yards out to give Nauset (0-4) a 6-0 lead. The point after was good.
Strong came into game on the next possession and led Durfee (1-3) down the field on an 11-play drive which ended with a Lucas three-yard run to tie the game at 7-7 after a successful extra point by Ladaynian Mendes.
After a Nauset punt, Lucas scored his second touchdown of the game from 30 yards out to give the Hilltoppers a 13-7 lead. Junior Kayden Kheav picked off a pass from Peno that set up a 24-yard touchdown pass from Strong to Ben Sherry in the back of the end zone with 16 seconds left before halftime. Lucas added the two-point conversion to give Durfee a 21-7 lead.
In the second half, the Hilltoppers scored on their first possession — an 18-yard touchdown by Jack Sousa as the lead grew to 28-7. Strong's two-yard run opened the game up at 34-7. Strong ran in the two-point play on a busted extra-point attempt play. Alvin Gaston capped the scoring with a three-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Defensively, Durfee had three sacks, forced three turnovers and picked off two passes.
Herald News and Taunton Daily Gazette sports editor Steven Sanchez can be reached at ssanchez@heraldnews.com. You can follow him on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @Chezsports.
This article originally appeared on The Herald News: First win for Durfee since 2021 Thanksgiving Day game
