The Vikings used a dominant first quarter to jumpstart their 37-7 rout of the Big Blue in a Division I, Region 8 quarterfinal at Pat Mancuso Field.
“It was like a reverse of the last time we played them,” Crouch said. “We got the breaks the first time. They got the breaks the second time. Got to give them credit. They played their ass off. They outplayed us, outcoached us. We’ve got to do a better job.”
Hamilton (9-3), which rolled Princeton 34-0 in Week 6, logged its first nine-win season since 1997. The Vikings (10-2) knocked Big Blue out of the playoffs 31-14 last season a week after Hamilton won its first playoff game in school history.
“Our program is right there, man,” Crouch said. “It’s to where we’ve got to get it over the top in the big game. We just ain’t there yet.
“I really appreciate these seniors. These seniors really turned the Big Blue around to being a contender. We’re so appreciative of them, and we’re proud of them.”
Princeton has won 13 of the last 16 meetings against Hamilton and will play in the regional semifinal for the second straight season. Princeton plays Moeller next Friday, likely at Mason.
“We were able to run the ball, and we were able to stop the run,” Vikings coach Andre Parker said. “We were able to execute. I thought we did really well special teams-wise.
“For the most part, we held our turnovers down. In the first game, we had turnovers that put them on the short side of the field. But we were able to win the field position game, which was huge.”
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
Hamilton had a muffed punt sail through the back of the end zone for a safety, and Princeton scored on a 20-yard De’Angelo Birch to Ryan O’Bryant connection that put the Vikings up 9-0 in the first four minutes.
David Hambrick caught a 25-yard touchdown pass from Antonio Hunter that made it 16-0 with 7:28 left in the first.
Then Teryntino Brown-Freeman scampered for a 68-yard touchdown run to give Princeton a 23-0 advantage at the 3:04 mark of the opening quarter.
“I believed in these guys, and I could tell by our temperature all week that we were going to be ready to play,” Parker said. “They were locked in. Every time they seen me, they were like, “Coach, we’re ready.’ And to be honest, they’ve been asking for this game. Since it happened, they’ve been asking for it.”
Hamilton senior running back Gracen Goldsmith rumbled for 166 yards and three touchdowns in the first contest against Princeton. Goldsmith was held to just 69 yards in the first half Friday.
Big Blue’s Wyman Carr Jr. picked off a pass and took it 41 yards for a score to cut Princeton’s lead to 23-7 on the first play of the second quarter.
Brown-Freeman scored his second touchdown of the night on a 35-yard run in the third, and Andrew Wells picked one off and ran it back for a score early in the fourth quarter to close it out for Princeton.
“We were a little banged up the last couple of games. We’ve been lucky all year,” said Crouch, who finished his third season as Hamilton’s head coach. “It cost us a little bit tonight. But that’s a good football team, and I think that’s going to be a good football game next week.
“This was the first time we won nine games in 30 years,” Crouch added. “There’s a lot to be proud of. I thought that we would get our second win. I felt really good about this game. But it wasn’t in the cards, man. It wasn’t in the cards. Nothing went right. If anything bad could have happened, it happened. We couldn’t overcome it. Their defense, credit them. They played their ass off. We’ve got some guys that we had to depend on in the long run here that really hurt us
“We’re just going to get better — go back to the drawing board. We’re going to hit the weights in the offseason — take our 30 days off. Big Blue’s back, man.”
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
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