MILTON — Staring down a quarterfinal matchup with an undefeated Dartmouth team, defending Division 3 runner-up Milton utilized experience and talent to cruise to a 28-7 victory and a berth in the state semifinals.

“We saw that they had an undefeated record, but we took it with a grain of salt,” senior captain A.J. Cicerone said. “We knew if we took it to them in the beginning that they wouldn’t be able to hang with us.”

Wildcats head coach Steve Dembowski said a hard schedule that saw his team lose three games helped the Wildcats prepare for difficult playoff games.

“They’ve worked hard, they know what it takes,” Dembowski said. “We’ve had some adversity this year, we played a really difficult schedule. We knew going in that it was going to be a challenge and that’s helped us in the tournament.”

Dartmouth started with the ball and earned a first down before being forced to punt. Milton would then drive into Dartmouth territory but would stall out and hand the ball back after a failed fourth down conversion.

The first big momentum swing came on the next drive when Dartmouth fumbled after some strong runs and the Wildcats took advantage. Quarterback Patrick Miller helped orchestrate a lengthy drive, capping it off with a five-yard pass to sophomore wide receiver Ronan Sammons.

“It’s always a constant read,” Miller said. “What they give us, that’s what we will do. Early in the game they gave us the pass.”

Dartmouth would then be forced to punt and running back Nathan Ehui would lead the drive downfield before finding the end zone on a 12-yard run to give the Wildcats a 14-0 lead. Milton would get another chance near the goal after forcing another fumble on the next drive, but an interception from Jason Martin held the score at the half.

Dartmouth would force another interception to start the second half but could not muster any momentum against the stout Milton defense. Senior running back Luke Hartford would make Dartmouth pay for this soon as he rattled off two big runs, the latter of which extended the lead to 21-0.

“Nathan’s long and explosive and Luke is a jitterbug,” Dembowski said. “He’s so low to the ground and he hides behind the guys well. I’m proud of those guys, it’s great to win and it’s great to have guys that work hard.”

A Teddy Collins touchdown would extend the lead to 28-0 before a late Dartmouth touchdown broke the shutout bid. While the win was huge for the Wildcats, Miller said the job is far from over.

“We can’t let our heads get too big,” Miller said. “Odds are next week will be a tough one. We just need to stay in check, work hard all week and stay within our bodies.”

Milton’s Ferris Collins, right, and Dartmouth’s Donovan Burgo reach for the ball Thursday night. Milton was a 28-7 winner. (Photo by Reba Saldanha/Boston Herald)