By STEVE MAZZONE

Sports writer

CUMBERLAND – The unfortunate happenings of the past few weeks were all forgotten by the Villa Novans on a beautiful Thanksgiving Day morning.
Travis Gagne and Tyrell Nealy each scored a pair of touchdowns as Woonsocket High earned the coveted St. Germain Trophy with a relatively routine 35-8 triumph over Cumberland Thursday at Tucker Field. In a close battle for three quarters, Woonsocket broke the game open in the final stanza, finding the end zone three times to solidify the win.
It was a bittersweet victory for the Villa Novans, who finished up their season before the Clipper fans. Woonsocket, which was involved in a five-way tie for first in Division II-A with a 5-2 league mark,  was left out of the postseason due to a complicated tie-breaking formula for the four playoff spots.

“It’s just a test to the kids’ character,” said WHS head coach Carnell Henderson, whose squad finished the fall campaign with a 6-4 overall record. “They knew they had one more opportunity together and they just wanted to savor the moment. They came out here and they fought, they fought hard for four quarters and they didn’t let up.”
Unlike their rival, the Clippers still have some football left on their slate. Cumberland (3-4 in II-B, 4-6 overall) is back on the field this Tuesday when it faces Tolman in the D-II semifinals. For most of the second half, it seemed as though the Clippers had that on their mind instead of the Villa Novans.
Cumberland finished the game with game with 129 yards of total offense. In the second half, the Clippers mustered just 13 yards on the ground and 35 via the air.
“We gave it our best effort and tried to be competitive,” CHS head coach Rick Reetz said. “I think we were for a little while and things just fell apart really rapidly. I think it was hard for us to focus for this game. As coaches, I’ll take the blame for that; and the players, also. Emotionally, I don’t think we were prepared. But it doesn’t take anything away from Woonsocket. They played well. They’re a good team, obviously.”
The Clippers did do a good job of stopping the fleet feet of Nealy. The talented senior finished with 90 yards, but had just 18 the final three quarters. Nealy gained most of his total in the Villa Novans’ opening drive that ended when Gagne scored on a one-yard run. Nealy carried the ball just four times for 72 yards during the drive, including breaking free for a 55-yard scamper that set up Gagne’s first score.
On the ensuing possession, Cumberland responded with its lone touchdown. In an eight-play, 65-yard drive, junior quarterback Dan Canavan spotted Evan Patrick, a 6-foot-5 junior, in the left corner of the end zone. The two teammates hooked up for the two-point conversion to give the Clippers’ their only lead of the contest, at 8-7. Junior Dave Elkas (6 carries, 70 yards) did the bulk of the damage in the drive with runs of 10 and 28 yards.
Cumberland couldn’t generate much more offense after the first quarter as it was pressured all day by the Villa Novans’ defense. The Clippers did have a chance to score with time winding down in the second quarter. The opportunity arose when senior captain Josh Mota blocked a Woonsocket punt to give the Clippers the ball at the Villa Novans’ 28. Canavan tried to generate the offense with his arm but was 0-for-5, including a dropped pass by Elkas near the end zone.
Woonsocket took a 13-8 lead into halftime early in the second quarter. On the first play from scrimmage, Gagne outran a throng of Cumberland defenders for a 55-yard paydirt. Gagne was assisted on the play by his offensive line, which provided him with a huge gaping up the middle.
 “We have four seniors on the o-line and they showed their mettle,” said Henderson, while making reference to Charlie Vega, Eric Lee, Jordan Barr and Denis LaSalle. “Those kids fought hard for me all year. Those are the guys that usually that don’t get the praise. We ran the ball well all season and that begins with the offensive line.”
Woonsocket quarterback Domenic Hernandez, who was replacing injured signal-caller Danny Gonzalez, had a solid outing. He was 6-for-8 for 85 yards. Hernandez 16-yard pass to Jessie Charette early in the fourth quarter set up the Villa Novans’ next touchdown. After the Clippers were tagged for a five-yard penalty for a late hit after the play, Nealy hustled in for a six-yard score. Hernandez also hooked up with teammate James Suber for a 15-yard TD pass on the next possession for a commanding 29-8 advantage.
‘It’s tough at this level to give your number two some good reps, especially when I kind of flooded the kids with a lot on offense this year,” Henderson said. “I’m kind of looking forward to working with him in the offseason and getting him ready to go next year.”
Nealy put the final nail in the coffin, scoring on a 13-yard run with time running out. He was given the opportunity when he recovered a Cumberland fumble and then ran to the left sideline for the touchdown.
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Woonsocket 7 6 0 22 - 35
Cumberland 8 0 0 0 - 8
W – Travis Gagne 1 run (kick)
C – Dan Canavan 15 pass to Evan Patrick (Canavan pass to Patrick)
W – Gagne 55 run (pass failed)
W – Tyrell Nealy 6 run (Nealy run)
W- Dominic Hernandez 15 pass to James Suber (Gagne run)
W – Nealy 13 run (kick failed)
    CHS   WHS
First downs   3   5
Rushes-yards   24-47   39-154
Passing    8-24-1   6-8-0
Passing yards   82   85
Punts-ave.   3-23   0-0
Fumbles-lost   3-1   2-1
Penalties   3-15   5-48

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: C – Mike Hayes 2 (-2), Dan Canavan 3-(-21), Dave Elkas 6-70, Alex Jalette 2-13, Ivan Henriquez 1-2, Brandon Aikens 2-(-3), Michelangelo Federici 3-(-11). W – Dominic Hernandez 3-(-3), Tyrell Nealy 16-90, Cody Mazzarella 9-28, Travis Gagne 9-28, James Suber 1-10, John Foncesca 1-1
PASSING: C –Canavan 8-21-1 82, Hayes 0-3-0 0. W – Hernandez 6-8-0 85.
RECEIVING: C - Elkas 3-34, Evan Patrick 2-30, Brandon Aikens 1-4, Brad Camiel 1-5, Jalette 1-9. W – Luis Heredia 1-17, Mazzarella 1-13, Jarome Robinson 1-5, Jessie Charette 1-16, James Suber 2-34.