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November 27, 2007

Division II: Toll Gate vs. Cranston East

Doug Johnson had all the answers last night, except one.

Johnson, a rugged, 6-foot, 200-pound junior running back had just played the game of his life. He scored three touchdowns, ran for 225 yards and spearheaded his Toll Gate team to a stunning 26-6 upset over top-seeded Cranston East in a Division II playoff semifinal at Cranston Stadium.

When it was over, Johnson was standing in the end zone with his teammates, most of whom were screaming, ``Super Bowl, Super Bowl, Super Bowl.’’ They were celebrating perhaps the biggest victory in school history when Johnson realized he did not have the answer to one question _ the one about the Super Bowl.

``I don’t even know the last time Toll Gate went to a Super Bowl,’’ he said as he and his teammates enjoyed themselves.

His coach, Steve Spaziano, was happy to provide the answer.

``Only once, in 1990. I was on the team,’’ Spaziano said. ``We got beat by one of those great Rogers teams, 24-0.’’ Spaziano not only was on the team, he was the captain for coach Emo DiNitto.

Spaziano has not made a big deal of the Super Bowl. He has spent more time getting his players to believe in themselves. Toll Gate has not been a football power. What’s more, when it met East in the regular season, the Bolt won, 28-6.

``We were intimiated. You could tell we were intimidated,’’ Johnson said of the first meeting between the teams. ``We weren’t ready to play. Tonight we were ready to play. On their turf and everything, we were ready.’’

``We changed some things,’’ Spaziano said.
On defense, Toll Gate went much of the way with three and four-man fronts designed to slow Cranston East star running back Geoffrey Gillson. Gillson, who injured his ankle in the Thanksgiving Day victory over Cranston West, did not play in the first quarter. He did play in the last three, but never got room to run.

Johnson, on the other hand, got plenty of room.

``The line was awesome,’’ he said. ``The holes were there.’’
Even when the holes were not there, Johnson ran over and through tacklers in a very, very impressive display.

Toll Gate took the lead through the air. Michael Zincone flipped a short pass to Joel Haduch on Toll Gate’s second possession. Haduch broke two tackles as he caught the ball and then outraced everyone 72 yards for the game’s first score. Cranston East responded by scoring on an eight-yard pass from Shay DiPina to Phillip Gibbs on its next possession.

That’s when Johnson took over. He completed an 87-yard, nine-play drive with a 12-yard scoring run.

Then, in the final minute of the first half, as Toll Gate seemed to be simply running out the clock, Johnson took a handoff, went left, cut back to the right, broke at least two tackles and raced 70 yards to make it 19-6 at the half. Toll Gate had 270 yards of offense in the first half alone. Johnson added still another score, from 37 yards, to clinch it in the final quarter and send the Titans to the bowl Saturday, also at Cranston Stadium against fellow upstart South Kingstown.

--PAUL KENYON

Posted by Corey Bourassa  at 9:00 PM to High School | Permalink

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