Jack Martinelli has his Foxborough squad back in the Division 5 Super Bowl.
Jack Martinelli has his Foxborough squad back in the Division 5 Super Bowl.Ken McGagh for The Boston Globe
BRIDGEWATER — From the opening whistle, Foxborough controlled both lines of scrimmage. The end result: a commanding 31-0 victory over sixth-seeded Archbishop Williams for No. 2 Foxborough, and a third-straight trip to the Division 5 Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium.
There, the Warriors (9-2) will face a familiar foe: Shawsheen, which shut out Foxborough, 14-0, in last year’s final after the Warriors prevailed in the 2023 semifinals.
In the absence of two-way Foxborough star Ryan Foley (injury), junior Jack Taft filled in admirably with 109 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns.
The Warriors won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff to establish the tone. Archbishop Williams (10-1) was stout defensively initially.
But, on third and long, the run-first Warriors hit on a 31-yard strike from Cam Deleskey to Kam Rice. Taft then opened the scoring with a 1-yard plunge.
“The linemen are unbelievable” said Taft. “They do all the hard work.”
On the Bishops’ first possession, star freshman Hudson Garrity was sacked for the first of four times (for a loss of 33 yards).
Foxborough (9-2) scored on all five its first-half possessions.
Deleskey capped the second drive with a 2-yard quarterback sneak to put the Warriors up 14-0.
“[The players] knew they were up against an undefeated, upstart team. A young team,” said Foxborough coach Jack Martinelli, now in his 44th year. “They have some really good skill players. And I think our guys wanted to make it a point that it’s important to have been here before.”
After another three-and-out for Archbishop Williams, Foxborough’s Andrew Higgins booted a 30-yard field goal.
Taft added two more scores in the first half, on a 1-yard blast and a 25-yard reception from Deleskey — the run set up by a fumble recovery from senior captain Kolby Hassett, who later had an interception.
The Foxborough defense has been a strength all season. On Saturday, the Warriors forced two turnovers and allowed only 45 total yards.
The Bishops entered the game averaging 32 points per game.
“The defensive line played out of their minds” said two-way captain Matthew O’Keefe. “It’s hard to play against a kid like [Garrity]. Everyone knows who he is, but we shut him down.”