WESTWOOD — For the Northeast 7v7 New England title Thursday night at Xaverian, the top seeds and highest-performing teams met in the championship.
It came as a surprise that Methuen and Milton were the last teams standing.
In a hotly-contested game, Methuen earned a 22-19 victory, and with that the Rangers have earned a boost heading into the fall.
Methuen won the North regional a few weeks ago, and only lost to Peabody on Thursday.
“That definitely gives us a lot of momentum now,” said Methuen quarterback Drew Eason, who is going into his third year starting for the Rangers. “Obviously, we know we can be at the top and win like this, against good teams, too. It gives us a lot of momentum going into the season.”
Rangers coach Tom Ryan was pleased with how 7-on-7 has impacted his squad.
“I think, honestly, the synergy between the quarterback and wide receivers (stands out),” Ryan said. “That’s always the best benefit of 7-on-7. Defensively, it’s kind of like a monstrosity of schematics. But the synergy between those are great. And we actually found some receivers that we didn’t know we had through this process. So that part’s been awesome. So now I feel real good about our receiving corps going into the season.”
And Ryan definitely feels great about his quarterback. Eason was tremendous Thursday, as he has been all season — and, for that matter, his career. Eason showed accuracy to all points on the field, and is one of the best quarterbacks in a state that is overflowing with good ones.
“He’s been our starting quarterback for three straight years, and we’ve won (regionals) three years in a row,” Ryan said. “He can sling it with the best of them. I don’t think anyone else is better than him. I don’t make those decisions, I guess. But I’m glad he’s our quarterback for sure. He’s unbelievable.”
Also playing well for Methuen were running back Shane Eason, wide receiver Adrian Blake, tight end Nolan Smith, and linebacker Matt McCormack, who had a big pick-six in the semifinals against Central (R.I.).
Milton had a great run to the finals, led by quarterback Patrick Miller. Other standouts included Harry Hinkle, Ferris Collins, Ronan Sammon, Will Renz and Luke Haley.
The Cinderella of the group was Carver, which competes in Division 8 during the season. But the South Shore contingent was impressive all summer. The team features quarterback Ty Lennox, wide receiver/cornerback Robbie Peterson, wide receiver Derek Lopes, defensive end/offensive tackle James Callahan, running back/cornerback Patrick Attaya, wide receiver/outside linebacker Nate Helms, and athlete Jameson Helms.
Central, under coach Mike Washington, made a terrific run in what was a strong showing from Rhode Island. Quarterback Avani Rodrigues, defensive back/running back Ramel Richards and wide receiver/defensive back Damarion Kyne all stood out.