Vermont H.S. football: Colchester books playoff spot in rout of MMU

COLCHESTER - Charlie Cusson-Ducharme dropped back into coverage, locked onto Mount Mansfield quarterback Owen Trudeau and stepped right into the pass over the middle for the interception.

Some 25 yards later, Cusson-Ducharme was in the end zone, celebrating with teammates on a memorable pick-six: Colchester wasn't losing on senior night — not with a playoff berth to secure.

Cusson-Ducharme's INT return for a score and an 18-carry, 120-yard rushing night on offense propelled the Lakers to a 38-12 victory over Mount Mansfield in a Division I high school football regular-season finale on Friday night.

The Lakers, at 4-4, have earned the No. 8 slot for the D-I playoffs.

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"He had a pretty good night," said Colchester coach Tom Perry of Cusson-Ducharme. "We are playing better football and the kids are having fun and now there's some confidence."

Quarterback Alex Rublee added 126 yards and one TD  on 14 carries while Carson Corrigan (54 yards, one rushing TD) and Brody Stannard (TD reception) aided Colchester's attack.

Cooper Knight (92-yard kickoff return) and Nick Trudeau (20-yard rush) had the TDs for the Cougars (2-6).

My four quick takeaways from Friday:

►Fast start ignites Lakers

By the time it was a 17-0 Lakers' lead midway through the second quarter, MMU had the ball twice, amounting to just 12 total yards in 9 plays. How did it turn so lopsided, so quickly? After Cusson-Ducharme scored from 3 yards out on the Lakers' second possession, coach Perry opted for an onside kick, which Dale Colley recovered. That led to a Chase Carey 31-yard field goal and 10-0 lead in the early moments of the second quarter. Then after MMU's second drive stalled near midfield, Corrigan sped his way from 18 yards out. The Colchester lead grew to 24-0 by the break.

►Inside running powers Lakers

When the Lakers needed a first down, they turned to Cusson-Ducharme, who trucked his way through the heart of the MMU defense for positive gains on nearly every carry. Indeed, the senior had 12 rushes of five or more yards. And on Colchester's final TD drive, Cusson-Ducharme gained 33 yards to set up Rublee's QB keeper midway through the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. For the contest, Colchester ran for 368 yards on 50 attempts.

►Colchester defense shines in big spots

A week after forcing six turnovers in the rout of Burlington/South Burlington, the Laker defense came away with five interceptions on Friday night. Cusson-Ducharme highlighted the turnover barrage with his aforementioned pick-six covering 25 yards to open the second half and stake the Lakers to a 31-0 advantage. Max Grenier and Tristian Olsen each had two INTs, with Grenier's picks coming inside his own 30 and at the goal line to deny very promising MMU drives and ultimately keep the Cougars at bay.

►On senior night, Lakers wrap up playoff spot

While in good standing to earn a playoff spot entering Week 8, the Lakers didn't leave their fate to others and took care of business themselves, firing out of the gate on senior night to the early advantage vs. the Cougars.  The reward for booking a playoff spot? Most likely a date at No. 1 St. Johnsbury in the quarterfinals next weekend. The Hilltoppers need to win its Week 8 game vs. Lyndon to clinch the No. 1 seed.

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Contact Alex Abrami at 660-1848 or aabrami@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter: @aabrami5.