NEW BEDFORD — The Seekonk High School football team nearly committed the Cardinal Sin of sports, underestimating an opponent, when the Warriors met up with winless host Greater New Bedford Voc Friday night, Oct. 30, in a South Coast Conference outing at Riley Stadium. Luckily for the locals, their last-gasp effort proved enough to beat back the Bears, 23-18.

The Warriors kept pace with both Fairhaven and Dighton-Rehoboth atop the league standings, improving to 5-1 on the season. Matt Lockwood scored two for the locals, including the game-winning touchdown with just 34.3 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, and rushed for 121 yards on 10 carries. The Bears remained winless overall at 0-7 and in the SCC at 0-6.

"They're all kids. We have a lot of young kids, but even our captains were a little lethargic this week, thinking it's only Voc," said SHS head coach Jack Whalen. "They didn't say it, but they were thinking it. And we're telling all week, Fairhaven 30, Voc 28. But they were like, Wareham put 50 on them. And we were like, this team can move the ball, score points.

"Hopefully it was lesson learned. Luckily it wasn't one learned the hard way because it very easily could have been."

After a scoreless opening quarter, Seekonk was first on the board early in the second following a Voc turnover. David Silveira fumbled at his own four-yard line, which was recovered by the Warriors’ Andrew Killian. The Bears had just stopped Seekonk on a fourth-and-goal at the four. Two plays later, however, the Warriors were back in business.

The locals needed three plays to score six. Joe Teixeira sandwiched two runs of three of yards to reach paydirt around a Lockwood carry for no gain. Voc blocked Alex Sawyer’s point-after attempt, leaving the score 6-0 15 seconds into the second quarter.

The Bears answered with a 14-play, 60-yard drive to tie the score. Fullback Jordan Burress did much of the work, touching the ball seven times on the march. His juggling catch of a Drew Frenette toss in the corner of the endzone and just inbounds covered the final four yards on a fourth-down play. Frenette’s throw for two fell incomplete and the game was level at six with 1:33 showing before the break.

Seekonk executed its two-minute offense well leading up to intermission. D.J. Anderson took a reverse 31 yards to get the Warriors into the Bears’ end then quarterback Jake Lyman hit wide-out Kevin Pomerleau on a 23-yard pass play to the Voc 10. Sawyer ended the drive and the half with a 27-yard field goal to put the locals up 9-6.

The Bears responded out of the locker room with another methodical march, this time a 70-yard, 10-play effort to take the lead, 12-9. Burress again was the workhorse, running seven times with 39 yards and taking an underneath toss from Frenette the final 28 yards to the endzone. A two-point run attempt was snuffed out by the Seekonk defense, but the Bears were still up by three at the exact mid-point of the third period with 5:00 to go.

The see-saw pattern of the game continued as the Warriors scored on their ensuing possession to retake the edge, 15-12. Lockwood, who had 89 of his yards in the second half, was the standout for the locals. He had runs of 18 and 16-yards during Seekonk’s 71-yard response, capping the drive with a three-yard spin up the middle. Anderson fumbled on a run attempt for two, so the locals’ lead stayed at three six seconds into the fourth quarter.

It was now Voc’s turn to rally, and the hosts did so immediately as they took over seven minutes off the clock in their 15-play, 63-yard scoring drive. Frenette took to the air more during the sequence, completing a pair of passes to tight end Aaron Gadd for a couple of key first downs. Burress set up the go-ahead score with an eight-yard run on fourth-and-four from the Seekonk 11. And Silveira ended the series with a two-yard burst. Yet another two-point throw attempt went incomplete, but the Bears were on top 18-15 with 2:04 to go.

With their playoff hopes on the line, the Warriors had one final opportunity to convert and the locals did so. Anderson helped set up the drive with a 20-yard kickoff return to the Seekonk 42 with 1:57 showing. Lockwood then did much of the rest, bulling his way deep into Voc’s end with a 17-yard rumble. Teixeira added a seven-yard run before Lockwood slid his way into the endzone for the last three yards with 34.3 remaining. Lockwood added a two-point run for good measure for the final points of the game.

Lyman, at free safety, ended any chance of a Voc miracle comeback, picking off his counterpart Frenette on the second play of the Bears’ last-gasp drive after having dropped a certain interception on the first play of the series. Lyman took one knee at his own 36 to end the contest.

The Warriors are back in action next Friday night, Nov. 6, at home when they welcome Wareham to Connolly Field at 7 o’clock.

RHODE ISLAND RESULTS

In Pawtucket, Steve Crawford threw for three touchdowns and David Silvia scored a pair as the Barrington High squad breezed by host St. Raphael, 33-6, in a Division One contest. The Eagles improved to 5-1 in the league standings. The Saints dropped to 1-4.

In Bristol, Aaron Booth ran for scores of 73 and 20 yards as part of his 192-yard first half performance to lead the Mt. Hope High contingent to a 47-0 rout of visiting Chariho in a Division Two-A contest. The Huskies kept pace with the leaders in the division, improving to 5-1.

In Newport, East Providence built a seemingly comfortable two-touchdown lead over host Rogers at Toppa Field, but the Townies needed to fend off the Vikings in an eventual 14-6 victory in a Division One contest. Dana Andrade returned a fumble recovery a poor Rogers pitch 45-yards for one of the E.P. scores. Emerson Perez raced for the other on a 55-yard scamper. Andrade also had another fumble return called back due to a penalty. The Townies improved to 5-1 in the league.