North Attleboro, Ryan Bannon romp by Mansfield for Div. 3 crown

FOXBORO — Ryan Bannon ensured he ended his career as a champion.

After missing both the state semifinal and Thanksgiving Day games due to injury, Bannon rushed for 91 yards and three touchdowns while commandeering a defense that posted a shutout to lead No. 4 North Attleboro to a 35-0 win over Hockomock Davenport foe Mansfield in the Division 3 Super Bowl on Friday night at Gillette Stadium.

The Super Bowl is North Attleboro’s first since 2002 and eighth championship overall.

“I gotta thank my (offensive) line and my coaches for trusting in me,” said Bannon. “I am coming back from injury right now and I just can’t believe they trusted me with the ball. It could not have ended any better.”

North Attleboro’s Bryce Kiser (2) is tackled by Mansfield’s Tom Muldoon during the Div. 3 Super Bowl in Foxboro. North Attleboro was a 35-0 victor. (Staff Photo/Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)

The Red Rocketeers (10-3) dominated wire-to-wire, keeping the Hornets’ prolific offense off the field while sustaining long drives. Up front, the Red Rocketeers’ defensive line of Nathan Rivera, Patrick Hamilton, and Austin Clemente suffocated the Mansfield ground attack that posted 20 touchdowns this season.

“I am just super proud of this football team,” North Attleboro coach Mike Strachan said. “Our defense played great. We did some things differently we hadn’t shown before and they played great.”

It was Rivera who helped manufacture North Attleboro’s first score of the night midway through the first quarter. After Hamilton punched the ball loose, Rivera fell on the fumble to set the Red Rocketeers up at the Mansfield 38-yard line. Seven plays later, quarterback Chase Frisoli scrambled into the end zone from five yards out to give North Attleboro a 6-0 lead.

The sides traded stops in the second before North engineered an extended drive to stretch its lead. Over the course of nine plays, the Red Rocketeers drove 75 yards capped off by Bannon, who burst through three tackles to ultimately find the end zone for a 10-yard score and a 14-0 halftime edge.

North Attleboro’s first drive of the second half put the game firmly out of reach. Frisoli began the drive by showing off his arm as he hit Lucas Crovo with a 46-yard strike. Later in the drive, Bannon plunged in from a yard out for his second score to give the Red Rocketeers a commanding 20-0 lead with five minutes to play in the third.

North Attleboro’s Nathan Rivera (55) celebrates his sack during his team’s Super Bowl win in Foxboro. (Staff Photo/Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)

Bannon capped off his hat trick with a one-yard touchdown run in the waning minutes of the fourth.

“If it was anyone else we still would’ve won,” Bannon said, referring to playing a league rival. “It was better for the atmosphere because the (teams) were local so a lot more people showed up. But the team we played didn’t matter tonight.”

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