The Randolph Oilers are at a crucial point in their 2011 Eastern Football League season having dropped a 32-21 decision to the red hot Bay State Bucs last Friday evening at Veterans Stadium in Quincy. The Oilers are now 2-6 and will need a lot of help from other teams to qualify for postseason play.
The red hot Bucs, with Anthony Comer at quarterback, scored on their first two possessions to take a commanding 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
The Oilers responded with some offense of their own as quarterback James Merrick and wide receiver Vinny Ventosi hooked up on a nifty 51 yard touchdown strike to make the score 14-6. The speedy Ventosi caught Merricks bomb in stride at the Bucs 20 yard line and weaved his way through the Bucs defense for one of the most impressive Oiler touchdowns in years. It appeared that the momentum was now shifting the Oilers way. The story for the balance of the first half was the relentless Bucs pass rush. The frisky Bucs defensive line disrupted the Oilers passing attack and this caused numerous turnovers. The Bucs were able to convert the turnovers and left the field with a commanding 26-6 lead at the end of the first half.
The Oilers mounted a second half comeback as quarterback James Merrick led the team on a 67 yard scoring drive to open the second half. Merrick found wide receiver Matt Trainor all alone in the end zone for a 16 yard touchdown pass to close the gap to 26-13.
LB John Martell makes another big play for the Oiler defense.
DB Richard Johnson closes in on Bucs running back
The Bucs answered the Oilers comeback by adding another touchdown, to pad their lead to 32-13 early in the fourth quarter. But again the Oilers refused to quit and turned a Billy Mallory fumble recovery into a scoring opportunity. Vinny Ventosi caught a tipped pass in the back of the end zone to make the score 32-21. The Oiler offense was unable to generate any further scoring drives. Both wide receivers Will Price and Vinny Ventosi had outstanding games for the Oilers. On the defensive side, Mike Eshner, De Yoman Young and John Martell led the way.
The next game is Saturday, September 10 against the Quincy Militia at Veteran’s Stadium in Quincy.
