**Mascoma Advances to Division IV Championship After Raymond Forfeits Semifinal**
*WEST CANAAN* — With his team trailing 16-0 to Mascoma in the second quarter of Saturday’s NHIAA Division IV football semifinal, Raymond coach Tona McCarthy abruptly called an end to the game.
The decision sends the defending state champion and No. 2-seeded Mascoma Royals to Saturday’s championship game against top-seeded Hillsboro-Deering, who defeated Farmington-Nute 35-14 in the other semifinal contest.
After the game, as the Rams gathered their equipment, McCarthy hugged his players. When asked about his decision to forfeit the contest, he responded, “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Mascoma coach John Daley met with McCarthy and officials on the field moments before the game was called. “He said they don’t have any guys left. They are all hurt,” Daley said.
Before the game ended, Mascoma had dominated on both sides of the ball, and it appeared the Royals would have been able to score much more if the game had continued. The Rams, who suffered three player injuries (though those players were able to walk off the field) and saw a fourth player ejected after a penalty, were clearly outmatched by the bigger and faster Royals.
Mascoma defeated Raymond in last year’s Division IV championship game, 45-0, and again in the first game of this season, 38-8.
Aside from a lost fumble on the second play of the game from scrimmage, the Royals effectively moved the football at will. The defense stopped the Rams on three downs after the fumble. Starting from its own 12-yard line following a Raymond punt, Mascoma drove 70 yards on nine plays, featuring two significant runs by Declan Lyons and one by Paxten Roberts.
However, the Royals failed to convert a first down on a fourth-and-6 from the 15-yard line, giving the ball back to Raymond.
The Royals’ defense then forced the Rams back to their own 3-yard line and, on third down, a bad snap sent the ball out of the end zone, resulting in a safety and a 2-0 Mascoma lead with less than four minutes remaining in the first quarter.
Mascoma was on the move again after the free kick. Roberts caught a short pass and powered his way to the 29-yard line for a 20-yard gain. Two plays later, Lyons ran around the left side and into the end zone for a 23-yard touchdown. The successful two-point conversion made the score 10-0.
Raymond struggled on its subsequent possessions. On the day, the Rams had no first downs and negative yardage on the ground through three possessions.
Mascoma forced Raymond to punt on fourth-and-19 to start the second quarter. Beginning on the Raymond 45-yard line, Mascoma executed a third-down misdirection play where Roberts ran untouched down the right side for a 43-yard touchdown.
Shortly after the kickoff, on Raymond’s second play, the Rams called off the contest.
Daley expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance. “We know what our opponent today runs, and we prepared for it,” he said. “We had a really good half of football and executed everything the way it was designed. I am happy with the boys. They played well and were well-disciplined and are playing hard-hitting football.”
In their earlier-season meeting on September 27, Hillsboro-Deering defeated Mascoma 26-14.
The NHIAA Division IV championship game is scheduled for Saturday in Laconia at 1 p.m., featuring Mascoma against top-seeded Hillsboro-Deering.
https://vnews.com/2025/11/09/mascoma-wins-nhiaa-semis/
