Bedford football survives Exeter, elements to remain undefeated

EXETER – In the end, the Bedford High School football team got the win over Exeter it was after.

Fortunately for the Bulldogs, style points don’t count as much as the ones on the scoreboard.

Bedford gained just 10 yards of offense in the second half Saturday night and needed a pair of muffed snaps by the Blue Hawks deep in their own end in the fourth quarter to escape Bill Ball Stadium with a 13-7 victory in Division I action. Mike Vailas ran in from 1-yard out with 4:28 to play to put the Bulldogs on top for good.

“We’ve got a lot to work on,” Bedford coach Kurt Hines said. “They fought hard, but we didn’t move the  ball as well as we needed to. I’m proud of our guys. They’re a heck of a program and we had to fight for every inch.”

The Bulldogs gained 163 yards in the first half, getting inside the Blue Hawks’ 20-yard line twice, but Exeter’s defense didn’t break and Bedford had to settle for two Cooper Anibal field goals for a 6-0 halftime lead.

Bedford’s defense held Exeter to just 3 yards on its first 10 plays, and the Blue Hawks gained 52 of their 55 yards in the first half on a run by Shane Quimby late in the second quarter.

But the Blue Hawks dominated time of possession in the third quarter, as they held the ball for 8:13 of the frame. After holding Bedford to a three-and-out on its first possession, Exeter went on a 12-play, 40-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard touchdown run by Quimby that put the Blue Hawks up 7-6 with 2:29 to go in the third.

The drive was aided by a facemask penalty on third-and-9 that Bedford stopped for a 5-yard gain, and on a fourth-and-1 from the Bulldogs 39, Chris Kelly ran for 15 yards and a first down.

“We extended drives for them with some foolish penalties,” Hines said. “I don’t know if they made adjustments, but they just did what they do well. They moved the ball with about 4 yards a carry, and the off tackle and the traps up the middle are what they do best.”

Bedford’s offense couldn’t get a first down on its next two possessions, and after the second, Exeter took over at its 19-yard line as the rain picked up. The Bulldogs defense held, and on fourth down and the Blue Hawks ready to punt, Grant LaButte couldn’t handle the snap and fell on the ball at his own 14.

After a couple of runs, Bedford faced a fourth-and-2 at the 6, but took a timeout after its field goal unit ran out. The offense came back on and Vailas was able to pick up three yards for the first down, Bedford’s only one of the second half.

Two plays later, Vailas slipped around the right side of the line and into the end zone for the go-ahead score.

A touchback on the kickoff gave Exeter the ball at its own 20, but the Blue Hawks couldn’t get a first down and LaButte went back to punt again. This time, the snap was bobbled, giving the Bulldogs enough time to get in and block the kick.

Bedford took over at the Exeter 18, but went backward, and turned the ball over at the Blue Hawks’ 23, but an unsportsmanlike penalty on second and a personal foul on third down moved Exeter back. On fourth down from the Exeter 17, Kyle Ball fumbled the snap and fell on it at his own 9 as time ran out.

Vailas finished 6 of 12 passing – just two attempts in the second half – for 97 yards and Colin Cashin had 65 yards rushing, while Quimby led Exeter with 88 yards on the ground.

“You have to (take advantage) in games like this,” Hines said. “It was tough for Mike to handle the ball, but it was tough for both teams. We’ll take the win, but it wasn’t pretty.”