NEEDHAM – The oldest public high school football rivalry never disappoints.
Wellesley nearly gave up a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter, but the Raiders’ defense made just enough plays to secure their fourth consecutive Frederick J. Gorman Centennial Trophy.
Darren Jimenez made a critical interception with just over two minutes left in the game, and Wellesley held on to beat the Needham Rockets 24-17 on Thanksgiving at Memorial Park.
Wellesley (8-3) won the 135th edition of the rivalry and leads the overall series 66-60-9.
“Any time you get a win against Needham is a good day,” said Wellesley coach Jesse Davis. “That is a well-coached, very good football team. We bent, but we didn’t break.”
Needham (5-6) came within four points of tying the game on Dante Varano’s 30-yard field goal at the end of the third quarter, but Eddie Webb answered with a 32-yarder for Wellesley on the next drive to go up 24-17. The Raiders wouldn’t score again, relying on their defense to halt three Rockets possessions over the final 7:32 of the game.
Grant Moffitt’s third sack of the game helped force a four-and-out on Needham’s next possession. Jimenez then stepped in front of a Ben Chapman pass for the interception with 2:08 left in the game.
Needham’s defense brought down senior co-captain Vincent Ferrara on fourth down to get one more possession from the Rockets’ 16-yard line with 31 seconds left. But Jakob Parker, another Wellesley senior co-captain, broke through the offensive line to strip Chapman on the next play, forcing the Rockets to take a five-yard loss that ended any chance of a last-second touchdown.
“So proud of our boys for coming out here and fighting,” said Parker, who finished with one sack and two tackles for loss. “We brought the pressure to the quarterback, which gave Darren, my middle linebacker buddy, the opportunity to get the pick.”
Parker’s 1-yard touchdown run gave Wellesley the 7-0 lead with 3:14 left in the first quarter, and Ferrara made it 21-0 on a touchdown run and then 20-yard pass to Tyler Yen. Ferrara finished 18-27 for 160 yards and a touchdown, with Yen catching five passes for 52 yards.
Chapman and the Rockets got back into the game with a 17-play, 80-yard drive that ended with him running in a 1-yard score right before halftime. Chapman completed eight passes for 130 yards, including a 9-yard scoring strike to brother Spencer to get within 21-14 with 2:57 left in the third.
Both of Needham’s touchdown drives relied on fourth-down conversions. Chapman, a senior co-captain, converted four times on fourth down, each requiring a completion of at least eight yards.
“Ben is the consummate football player,” said Needham coach Doug Kopcso. “He understands how the game is played. He never gets bothered no matter the situation, so he’s just been such a tremendous leader for us.”
