By MIKE SCANDURA

Contributing writer

NORTH SMITHFIELD - Under normal circumstances, Smithfield’s Peter Dionisopoulos wouldn’t carry the ball 35 times.
But the circumstances under which Friday night’s non-league game between the Sentinels and North Smithfield was played were anything but normal.
Smithfield out-slogged the Northmen, 21-6, in a game that was played in torrential downpour from the opening kickoff to the final whistle.

Dionisopoulos, a senior running back, shredded the Northmen for 169 yards and two touchdowns in the first night game - in any sport - ever played at North Smithfield.
“The weather actually neutralized a lot of what we like to do,” said Smithfield coach Chris Branch. “We like to run a lot of play-action passes but we felt we couldn’t do that because of the weather.”
The rain not only affected the Sentinels’ offense but it also hampered their special teams - especially when Smithfield lined up to punt.
After botching three punts due to bad snaps, Branch  twice opted to go for a first down in fourth-down situations in the final quarter with Smithfield leading, 14-6.
On fourth-and-three from North Smithfield’s 34, Dionisopoulos busted loose for eight yards and a first down.
Then, on fourth-and-seven from the Northmen’s 27, Dionisopoulos gained seven yards off left tackle for another first down.
Dionisopoulos eventually blasted into the end zone from the 9 with 54 seconds left on the clock to clinch the victory.
“How many bad snaps did we have on punts,” queried Branch. “That’s why I went for it. I wasn’t going to take a chance (on another bad snap).”
Given the soggy conditions, it wasn’t a surprise that the teams combined for a total of 10 fumbles (five apiece).
Smithfield grabbed a 7-0 on the first possession of the game, marching 63 yards with Dionisopoulos covering the last 40 and Binyamin Demirgioglu kicking the first of this three extra points.
Then, early in the second quarter, Smithfield punter Sean Lynch recovered a fumbled snap only to be planted on his 5. Moments later, North Smithfield’s Peter Mancini scored on a five-yard run but a two-point conversion pass fell incomplete and Smithfield maintained a slim lead.
The Sentinels then reeled off a 76-yard drive that feature a 16-yard run on a reverse by Mike Colucci.
Eventually, quarterback Tim Jamieson lofted a 12-yard touchdown pass to Dan Kando in the end zone with 2:47 left in the half for a 14-6 lead.
North Smithfield’s Dan Keenan twice gave his team great field position by recovering botched Smithfield punts - including one at the Sentinels’ 38. But each time, Smithfield’s defense slammed the door.
“We played very good defensively,” said Branch. “We held them and did a lot of nice things. But North Smithfield is a good team and they played physical tonight.”
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Smithfield
North Smithfield
SM - Dionisopoulos 40 run (Demirgioglu kick)
NS - Mancini 5 run (pass failed)
SM - Kando 12 pass from Jamieson (Demirgioglu kick)
SM - Dionisopoulos 9 run (Demirgioglu kick)