Nauset Falls To D-Y Again, 35-32, In Another Thanksgiving Thriller

NORTH EASTHAM – For a second straight year, Nauset found itself walking off the field on Thanksgiving morning after being on the losing end of a high-scoring, back-and-forth thriller with Dennis-Yarmouth.

Despite a fast, perfect start by the Warriors, it was the visiting Dolphins who finished strong to win the 27th edition of the Chowder Bowl, 35-32, on Thanksgiving morning at Nauset.

The win marked four straight for D-Y (7-4), which extended its streak after winning a game that was very similar to the rivals’ 2022 meeting, a 45-42 win for the Dolphins on their home turf.

“It’s kind of what you’d expect out of us,” Nauset coach Jesse Peno said after his team finished 3-8. “We don’t play that much defense against each other, it’s just two teams that just get after it. They are a very well-coached team, they are very fast, and they throw a lot of stuff at us. I thought we were pretty physical today, but we just have got to get over the hump against them.”

The game featured seven lead changes, with D-Y taking control for good with 3:33 remaining when its junior quarterback Jayden Barber threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Oliver Doto to give the visitors a 35-32 advantage after a successful extra point by Zachary Quintilliani.

That was the final big play Barber needed to make, as he put the Dolphins on his back with three touchdown passes and 138 rushing yards — including a 58-yard rushing score that gave D-Y a 21-18 lead with 20.8 seconds left in the first half.

“He’s incredible,” Peno said of Barber. “From watching other teams and scouting them, I think he’s the best quarterback I have seen this year. He should get more recognition statewide. That kid is phenomenal. He’s a class act, he’s a hard worker, and a great leader for their team.”

Nauset got off to a fast start and built a 12-0 lead after senior Logan Daniels Julien — who was awarded the Warriors’ Offensive Most Valuable Player after the game — rushed for 1- and 4-yard touchdowns before D-Y found the end zone.

Sophomore quarterback Brendan Peno added 5- and 21-yard rushing scores for Nauset, in addition to throwing an 18-yard TD strike to senior Liam Johnston in the third quarter.

But the Warriors were bit by the injury bug — an issue that plagued them all season — when junior Owen White left the game with a knee injury and his classmate Ashton Lutz was hobbled by a knee injury of his own.

Even in defeat, coach Peno said he was proud of competing against D-Y, a team that he said has forced Nauset to raise its game.

“The outcome wasn’t what we wanted, but I told these guys that they could’ve packed it in after two or three weeks when they were down to 17 guys,” the coach said. “I told them over and over — they are probably sick of hearing me say it — but they just kept coming back and kept coming back.

“I’m so proud of them. Especially the seniors, but all of them, they just worked so hard.”