By Roger Brown
MaxPreps.com
Perhaps no one felt better about Hartford’s 26-14 victory over Rutland in Saturday’s Division I football championship game than senior running back/linebacker Mick Wong.
Wong ran for one touchdown and threw for another in the victory. He finished the game with 216 yards rushing on 29 carries, and also forced a fumble when he hit Rutland quarterback Trevor Olson on Hartford’s 1-yard line.
“We really wanted to show that a small town like us, with a whole bunch of junction boys, can play with other big schools,” Wong told the Burlington Free Press. “All we can say is that we’re small, but we’ve got a lot of heart.”
Top-seeded Hartford finished the season with a 10-0 record.
Wong’s TD pass, a 37-yard option pass to Robert Shaw, gave the Hurricanes a 20-14 lead with 1:05 to play in the first half. He added a 15-yard touchdown run with 8:30 to play in the third quarter.
Wong’s forced fumble came in the fourth quarter.
Connor Beerworth (3-yard run) and Rick Lantman (61-yard reception) scored Rutland’s touchdowns. Lantman’s TD helped make it a 14-14 game late in the first half.
The loss left second-seeded Rutland with an 8-3 record.
“I thought our kids played as hard as they could – we just came up a little bit short,” Rutland coach Mike Norman said. “We have nothing to be ashamed of. At the beginning of the season nobody really thought we were going to be here.”
DIVISION II: Second-seeded Spaulding won its second championship in as many years by beating top-seeded Mount Mansfield, 42-20, Friday night.
The victory avenged a 28-6 loss to Mount Mansfield during the regular season and improved Spaulding’s record to 10-1.
Spaulding wide receiver James Durham, who was suspended for the regular-season game against Mount Mansfield, scored on a 46-yard punt return and a 61-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Zach Dessureau.
“This is twice as sweet being a senior,” Durham said. “I really couldn’t ask for anything more to end my career.”
Dessureau completed 8 of 16 passes for 227 yards and four touchdowns. He also scored on a 1-yard run.
Mount Mansfield running back Brian Wilcox rushed for 238 yards on 26 carries. He gained 191 yards and ran for two touchdowns in the second half.
Mount Mansfield, which is in its fifth year as a varsity program, finished 7-3. The Cougars have reached the championship game in each of the past three years, but are still seeking their first title.
DIVISION III: An unlikely hero led top-seeded Springfield to a 52-28 victory over third-seeded Windsor in the Division III championship game.
Matt Mitchell rushed for 198 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries. He was thrust into the game when Stephen Miller, who rushed for more than 1,200 yards during the regular season, suffered an injury early in the first quarter.
Mitchell also intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble.
“Matt was the player of the game today,” Springfield quarterback Grant White said. “I don’t think he went down on the first hit all game long.”
Springfield, which led 38-6 at halftime, capped an 11-0 season by winning the program’s first state title since 1948.
Windsor finished 8-3.
“I was a little nervous when I went in,” Mitchell told the Rutland Herald. “I hadn’t started a game (on offense) yet this year. I have been waiting for my time to shine, but, of course, I didn’t want (Miller) to get hurt.”
