Owen Ellsworth’s 339 yards just what Algonquin football needed to top Marlborough

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Owen Ellsworth gets around the corner and brings the ball upfield. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

Owen Ellsworth gets around the corner and brings the ball upfield. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

MARLBOROUGH – Algonquin’s opponents can typically expect a heavy dose of Owen Ellsworth.

But nobody – with the exception of perhaps a few coaches and teammates in the Algonquin locker room – could have foreseen his dominance under the lights of Kelleher Field on Friday night. On 33 carries, the senior captain accumulated 339 yards (school record) and three touchdowns, leading the Titans to a 42-26 win over Marlborough.

On almost every snap, No. 44 in maroon-and-white reigned supreme. It was the Owen Ellsworth show.

“I think he’s tough, he runs hard downhill, and he’s a big kid. Those attributes together are hard. But, he works hard, man. He’s a leader, the kids respect him, his teammates love him. Us, as coaches, love him, and you have to have confidence in one of your best players and give him the ball. We fed him a little bit,” Algonquin Head Coach Mark Allen, who gave Ellsworth the game ball in the post-game huddle, told reporters after the win.

Algonquin’s Jordan Lopez looks for running lanes before cutting upfield. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

Algonquin’s Jordan Lopez looks for running lanes before cutting upfield. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

And while the Titans were chipper after emerging victorious, the team wasn’t so lively to start the game. With a packed, Homecoming-weekend crowd cheering the team on, the Marlborough Panthers asserted their dominance throughout the first quarter. A 55-yard strike from quarterback Michael Benway to wideout Calvin McFarlane put Marlborough ahead 6-0, and with just 11 seconds left to play in the opening period, a 53-yard run from Noah Sowden doubled the team’s lead, putting the Panthers in front 12-0.

But the Titans are no strangers to come-from-behind victories, and the team never panicked. On Oct. 5 – two weeks prior to the Marlborough matchup – Algonquin won after trailing Shrewsbury by 21 points with less than two minutes remaining. The dramatic win proved to be an inflection point in the team’s season, helping Titans believe in themselves and boosting players’ camaraderie and spirit.

Fumble! An Algonquin player loses the ball while being tackled. The ball would eventually bounce out of bounds. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

Fumble! An Algonquin player loses the ball while being tackled. The ball would eventually bounce out of bounds. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

So coming back from 12-0 with three-fourths of the game left? It wasn’t an issue for Algonquin.

“I like to say that it’s traditional Algonquin football. We started a little slow there, but we bounced back. I gave them a little message there in between periods – we needed to be a little more tough, a little more physical, because they were taking it to us. Props to Marlborough, they’re a tough, physical team. We had to rise to the occasion,” said Allen.

“We always know, coming to Marlborough, that it’s going to be a fight. They’re a great team. Their record doesn’t show it, but they’ve fought against every team. When we were down 12-0, we always knew that we’re fighters. Against Shrewsbury, we were down … 21 points with two minutes left. We’re a fighting team. We’re never down by too many. We persevere and I’m so proud of us right now,” said Ellsworth.

Two Algonquin defenders help drag down the Marlborough Panthers ballcarrier. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

Two Algonquin defenders help drag down the Marlborough Panthers ballcarrier. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

The Titans erased the 12-0 deficit with ease, scoring 21 unanswered points. A two-yard touchdown run from Ben Bertonazzi officially started the “comeback,” the defense recovered a fumble, and before long, Ellsworth rumbled into the end zone to make the game 21-12 midway through the third quarter.

When asked about his record-breaking performance, Ellsworth gave all the credit to his blockers.

“I’m so proud of the linemen. All I had to do was run up, make a cut – that’s all I had to do,” he said. “Kelvin Crispo, No. 6 – [he’s a] dog. He’s just leading the whole way. I’m so proud of us, every one of us. It’s a team win.”

The Marlborough Panthers huddle before the snap. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

The Marlborough Panthers huddle before the snap. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

Marlborough battled hard over the next quarter-and-a-half of action. A 44-yard run from Sowden helped the Panthers pull within one point of Algonquin, but a 48-yard run by Ellsworth flipped the field during the Titans’ next drive, and quarterback Will Mahoney snuck into the end zone to up Algonquin’s lead to 27-20.

It was more of the same from there. Marlborough’s Sheamus Mahoney scampered into the end zone to match Algonquin’s score, but the Titans fought back, and another touchdown from Bertonazzi put Algonquin ahead 35-26. Ellsworth would score his third touchdown with 55 seconds remaining to ice the game.

It’s Homecoming weekend for the Marlborough Panthers. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

It’s Homecoming weekend for the Marlborough Panthers. (Photo/Evan Walsh)

Why go to Ellsworth, who already had 32 carries at that point? It’s simple, said Allen.

“If he’s rolling, keep it going.”

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