Rochester Red Raiders hold off Andover, Mass., win NJFL championship, 24-21

Brandon Brown, Foster's Daily Democrat
Rochester Red Raider Riley Rup (19) and his father and team head coach Tom Rup raise the championship trophy after beating Andover, Massachusetts, 24-21 on Saturday in the Northeast Junior High Football League championship at Souhegan High School.
Rochester Red Raider Riley Rup (19) and his father and team head coach Tom Rup raise the championship trophy after beating Andover, Massachusetts, 24-21 on Saturday in the Northeast Junior High Football League championship at Souhegan High School.

AMHERST — A perfect eight-game regular season for the Rochester Red Raiders' seventh- and eighth-grade football team was good.

So was a 24-0 shutout over rival Exeter in the Northeast Junior High Football League Division I semifinal.

However, the season reached a peak with a win in Saturday's league championship game against Andover, Massachusetts. Rochester took care of business and held on for a 24-21 win at Souhegan High School.

Members of the Rochester Red Raider football team celebrate after beating Andover, Massachusetts, 24-21 on Saturday in the Northeast Junior High Football League championship at Souhegan High School.
Members of the Rochester Red Raider football team celebrate after beating Andover, Massachusetts, 24-21 on Saturday in the Northeast Junior High Football League championship at Souhegan High School.

"I'm super proud of those kids," Rochester head coach Tom Rup said. "The kids made (winning the championship) their goal from the beginning of the season. It was great to be a part of this and help them achieve their goals."

Connor Jackson's 20-yard quarterback touchdown run gave Rochester a 24-14 lead with 5 minutes left in regulation. Andover came back and marched down the field and scored a touchdown with just over a minute left, cutting the Rochester lead to three. Andover attempted the ensuing onside kick, but Rochester's Hagan Faucher recovered the kick, sealing the win.

"This is something my staff and I have been trying to get for the past eight years," Rup said. "To be able to accomplish that with this group of kids is definitely something special."

Rochester's Colby Lambert rushed for two touchdowns, and caught another in the win. Jackson threw for one and ran another in.

"It was the perseverance of the team (that won this game)," Rup said. "These kids wanted to win so badly, and they did everything they could to make sure they came out of this game with a win."

Other members of the team include Logan Cook, Chase Demers, Lucas Uraskevich, Bailey White, Riley Rup, Connor Jacques, Caleb Plante, Sam Kagema, Wyatt Arsenault, Caleb Moore, Christian Silve, Harry Levesque, Wyatt Hall, Logan Trofatter, Roland Grillo, Caleb Healey, Maverick Cates and Jason Moore.

This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Rochester Red Raiders win middle school youth football championship

Advertisement