MANSFIELD – On Saturday night, nobody needed to remind the Hawks where they were.
One year ago, Hudson took the field against Fairhaven, the eventual state champion, at Mansfield High School in the MIAA Division 6 semifinals. Despite being down 27-0 at halftime and 33-7 with 18 minutes remaining, the Hawks fought hard, getting the game to 40-37 and giving themselves an outside chance at winning. The team showed heart, but the playoff loss hurt just the same.
So, when this year’s semifinals were scheduled at Mansfield again, the top-seeded Hawks knew what needed to be done. Hudson officially put last year’s heartbreak in the rearview mirror Saturday night, and – after defeating No. 4 Norwell 21-14 – will look forward to a Super Bowl appearance at Gillette Stadium.
“The season came to an end last year on this turf, and now it’s some new turf. New results,” said second-year Hudson Head Coach Zac Attaway. “Our season’s not ending at Mansfield again … These boys worked hard all season, and now they get to punch that ticket to Gillette and we can keep rolling.”
Hudson was strong from the start, due in large part to the efforts of the Meuse brothers. Older brother Tyrese forced and recovered a fumble on Norwell’s opening drive, giving the Hawks great field position. Little brother Treson was the benefactor, scoring on a 4-yard run to put Hudson ahead 7-0.
Jake Attaway – Hudson’s star quarterback who recently surpassed 10,000 career yards – scooted into the end zone on a 1-yard sneak to double Hudson’s lead, and Tyrese Meuse came up huge again, making an acrobatic interception on his team’s 1-yard line to give the Hawks the ball once more.
“Heading to Gillette with my brothers – we wanted this last year. I couldn’t play last year, I broke my collarbone the day before the game. I felt like it was terrible, and I felt like I let my team down. So, I just left it all on the field today,” Tyrese Meuse told the Community Advocate after the game.
“It was a big thing for us. We lost here last year. This win just feels great,” added Treson Meuse.
A team that’s become accustomed to scoring plenty and jumping ahead early, the Hawks have been challenged the last two games. Last week’s 28-21 win over No. 8 Sandwich served as an important test for Hudson. Against Norwell, the high-flying Hawks were limited offensively, but the team adjusted its gameplan accordingly to grab the win.
“We talked to the guys that the game is going to be won in the trenches. They stepped up to the challenge. It was good to see the O-line firing off today, just making holes in between the tackles. Typically we’re an outside-run team, but we had to get gritty and work between the tackles today,” said Zac Attaway.
“They’re dropping the guys back, so we knew we could pound it. Our O-line was pushing them back, doing unbelievable. They’re always unbelievable, but today they were just different,” said Jake Attaway, who rushed for another touchdown later in the game. “We knew it was going to be close, because they played Sandwich tight, and we learned from that last game. We just pounded it down and won the game.”
