Bedford football slips past Exeter to reach D1 championship game

BEDFORD – Tyler Cibotti didn’t have much room to work.

As he dropped back to pass, the Bedford High School senior saw Taylor Larson cut between two Exeter defenders on his way toward the end zone. With just a split-second of time, Cibotti rifled a pass that Larson grabbed for the game-winning touchdown in No. 2 Bedford’s 14-7 win over No. 3 Exeter in the Division I semifinals on Saturday.

It was a play that Cibotti might not have made all season, but that’s only because he wasn’t the Bulldogs starting quarterback until last week. Filling in for injured starter Mike Vailas, Cibotti was 8 of 12 passing for 113 yards and had a rushing touchdown to go with the scoring pass to Larson, as Bedford (11-0)outgained the Blue Hawks 217-177 to advance to the championship game. Bedford will take on No. 1 Pinkerton on Nov. 22 at 6 p.m. at the University of New Hampshire.

“It’s what we asked for,” Bedford coach Kurt Hines said. “Our goal all year was to get to Cowell Stadium and we know we’ve got to do more work than we’ve ever done.”

Colin Cashin added 98 yards rushing on 18 carries and Larson caught four passes for 48 yards and the 10-yard touchdown pass from Cibotti, which put the Bulldogs head with 6:09 left in the game.

From there, the Bedford defense stepped up, forcing Exeter to punt twice on the next drive after a roughing the kicker call gave the Blue Hawks a first down near midfield.

Kyle Ball had the lone touchdown for Exeter, scoring on a 4-yard run in the second quarter that tied the game 7-7 with 2:48 to go until halftime. In the first half, the Blue Hawks had 112-84 advantage in yards but managed to gain just 65 in the second half. Chris Kelley led Exeter with 43 yards rushing on 12 carries.

“Speed for us has always been key defensively,” Hines said. “They were able to move the ball well and capitalize on some passes to the tight end. Ball did a heck of a job rolling out. Trying to contain him was tough.”

The Bulldogs took the lead early in the second quarter, when Cibotti ran it in from 2 yards out to finish off an 11-play, 70-yard drive. Bedford converted three third downs on the drive, including a 22-yard run by Cashin on third-and-6 from the Exeter 49, and a 16-yard completion by Cibotti to Thomas Reynolds on third-and-8 from the 25.

But Exeter answered with a 15-play, 86-yard drive that ate up eight minutes and ended with Ball’s touchdown run. The Blue Hawks converted two third downs of their own and a fourth-and-5 from the Bedford 25 when Ball hit Nick Floodstrom for a 17-yard gain.

The game was tied at 7 at halftime and Bedford forced a punt on Exeter’s first possession. The Bulldogs looked like they might go ahead when Cibotti found Andy Penaskovic wide open behind the defense, but the ball was a little overthrown and Bedford had to punt.

Taking over at midfield, Exeter moved into the red zone thanks to another fourth-down conversion, but the drive stalled at Bedford’s 10-yard line. The Blue Hawks lined up for a field goal, but the 27-yard attempt by  Matthew Oppici was wide right giving Bedford the ball at its own 20 with 3:37 left in the third.

The Bulldogs quickly moved down field, as Cibotti hit Larson for a 36-yard gain and then found Reynolds for a gain of 11. A 26-yard run by Cashin gave Bedford a first down at Exeter’s 14, and runs of seven yards by Cibotti and six by Cashin gave the Bulldogs a first-and-goal at the 1.

But on four tries from the 1, or closer, Bedford couldn’t score and Exeter took over on downs. That included fourth-and-goal, where Cibotti tried to change the play at the line.

“I have nothing but praise for Tyler Cibotti, but that was not a designed play,” Hines said. “I said keep it behind (center) Bobby (Heald), he’ll run you into the end zone. Whether we would have gotten it or not, I don’t know, but when he called the audible, he called for a little slide to our slot back and the back didn’t hear him.”

Bedford’s defense forced Exeter to punt and the offense went right back to work from the Blue Hawks’ 39. Cibotti hit Penaskovic for a diving, one-handed catch that gained 33 yards to the Exeter 11 and on third-and-9, the quarterback hit Larson for the game-winning touchdown.

“I’ve always trusted Tyler,” Larson said. “He’s a pretty good quarterback and he’s got the arm to get it in there. He did it last game, too, he was threading the needle pretty well.”

“Taylor had a post coming across the middle and it was cover four,” Cibotti said. “The (line)backer dropped back, so it was double coverage on Taylor, and he made a really good cut. As he made the cut, he split in between the backer and the safety and I gunned it right in there.”

Exeter got the ball back at its own 23 with 6:07 to play, and Bedford forced another punt, but on fourth down, the Bulldogs were called for roughing the kicker, giving the Blue Hawks a first down at their own 46.

But Exeter lost two yards on three plays, and on fourth-and-12, Ball was sacked by Eric Glassman for the second time on the drive, turning the ball over on downs. Exeter got the ball back again, this time with 1:36 to play, but on first down, Ball’s pass was intercepted by Dan Flynn to end the game.

“It’s the best feeling in the world,” Cibotti said. “This is what we’ve been working hard for all year. Our goal since the beginning of the year is to make it to the state championship. To be going to Cowell Stadium and playing at UNH is the best feeling in the world.”