WALPOLE — In a rematch of last season’s Div. 4 Final Four, the results remained the same as Scituate beat Grafton 14-3 victory at Walpole High School.

Scituate led the entire game but only held a 7-3 advantage late into the fourth quarter. Grayson Foley, on only his third carry of the game, put the contest to bed with 3:02 left to play in regulation on a fourth-and-goal plunge from the one-yard line.

The victory sends the Sailors back to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in the past six years with their last victory coming in 2021 in a 14-13 win over Duxbury.

Both teams were 10-0 coming into the game and each team recorded shutouts over their quarterfinal opponents, so Scituate head coach Herb Devine knew his squad was in for a long day.

“Give credit to Grafton as their defense was the real deal. They were physical, they did a great job up front on us all day, and our kids just had to make plays, and win a little unconventionally,” said Devine after he caught his breath from the post-game celebration. “We got a couple of turnovers, and it definitely helped us out, kind of flipped the field position, and we were able to score. That fourth-and-one was huge, game comes down to t-formation and we get to punch one in and it was pretty incredible.”

Scituate won the turnover battle, 3-0, but the big turning point was Lawson Foley’s interception with 7:07 left in the second quarter with the game scoreless. Foley picked off a pass at midfield and returned it up the right sideline down to the Gators 15-yard line.

Four plays later, Will Robinson scored from two yards out to give the Sailors the 7-0 lead after Griffin McGirr hit the extra point.

Grafton marched back down on the next series, but Gators head coach Chris McMahon elected to go with a 26-yard field goal from Ryan Davis on a fourth-and-four from the nine-yard line to end the first half.

“It’s not what we wanted, it’s not how we wanted our seniors to go out, but it’s a tough one,” said McMahon. “We’ve played them three times over the last four years – they are really good. In games like this when you have two good teams, a couple of plays here or there – a turnover, not converting on a third down – that’s the difference in a game like this.”

The Gators were inside the 20-yard line of the Sailors on three different occasions and also had a 22-yard touchdown run from Zeeland Youngblood erased on a holding penalty.

Finn Gilmore was the offensive star for Grafton with 27 carries for a game-high 127 yards, but it wasn’t enough against the Scituate defense which came up big when the Sailors needed the stops.

So, while the Gators had their chances – it was Foley and the Sailors who took advantage of the few opportunities. On the final series with 5:19 left to play, Foley took his second carry of the game 66 yards down to the three-yard line to set up the fourth-quarter theatrics. After three failed attempts against the tough defensive front of the Gators, Coach Devine put his faith back in his sophomore running back for the final nail in the win.

“We knew it was going to be a game with playing for field position, maybe our special teams would get a score,” said Devine. “But someone helped break Grayson’s (first) run all the way down, and it’s just a team win. To win a defensive battle like that and not be able to put points on the board like we are used to is a little different, but we will take it.”