EAST PROVIDENCE — After several twists and turns throughout much of the game's 48 minutes, the East Providence High School football team opened up its 2022 Division II regular season schedule by fending off  visiting St. Raphael Academy, 29-22, Thursday night, Sept. 15, at Pierce Memorial Stadium.

Steven Clark accounted for three of the Townies’ four touchdowns on the evening, including what proved the decisive score late in the third period that put the hosts up 27-9 at the time.

The Saints scored on their first possession of the night, capping off a long drive with a touchdown just under four minutes into the game. The extra point kick attempt, however, clanged off the right goal post, leaving St. Ray’s up 6-0.

Both sides were pretty sloppy throughout the rest of the first half, exchanging turnovers and punts until East Providence finally put a drive together early in the second quarter.

On the eighth play of the possession, quarterback Max Whiting connected with Yusef Adullah on a 40-yard pitch and catch to the SRA one. Clark plunged in on the next play to score E.P.’s first TD of the night at 8:19 of the second quarter. Isaac Fox’s kick for point put the locals on top, 7-6.

Not much of substance occurred for the remainder of the period until the Saints put a late drive together just before the break. The East Providence defense stiffened, but SRA managed to convert a 35-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to take a 9-7 lead to intermission.

(Updated, Friday, Sept. 16, noon) The Townies, next, exploded, literally, out of the break. Fox returned the second half kickoff 88 yards before being brought down at the Saints’ four. Whiting then took it in on a quarterback keeper on the first play of the drive. Fox’s kick was good, putting E.P. up 14-9 seconds into the third quarter

Later in the period, the Townies went up 21-9 when Clark capped off a 74-yard drive with an eight-yard run. Fox’s third PAT put the hosts in front by 12 with 4:04 left.

At the end of their ensuing possession the Saints tried some trickery, but it backfired in a big way. An attempt at a fake punt deep in their own end was stuffed East Providence D. On the next play, Clark put the Townies up 27-9 with a 22-yard run with 1:28 to go. The kick for point failed.

St. Ray’s was finally able to snap East Providence’s scoring run with a touchdown early in the fourth. The Townies topped the Saints’ two-point attempt left the score at 27-15 just over two minutes into the final period.

SRA wasn’t done with the sleight of hand, attempting and recovering an on-sides kick at EPHS 46. A few plays later the Saints were back in the endzone and were within five, 27-22, when they converted the PAT.

The Townies didn’t secure the win until the final minutes. After failing to convert on a fourth down deep in the Saints’ end, the visitors good the ball back on their own 10. The E.P. defense, once more, didn’t give ground, in fact they took it away, forcing SRA back to its own one. The Townies then sealed it when Jahad Davis Pinto was credited with forcing a safety to make it a seven-point lead.

East Providence was able to set up in “Victory” formation after recovering the Saints’ last, desperate on-sides kick attempt with 1:32 to go in the game.

The Townies are back in action next week when they’re scheduled to host Cumberland for a league contest Saturday morning, Sept. 24. Kickoff is set for 10:30 a.m. The game is again likely to take place at Pierce while a sink hole around a light post at the stadium on the EPHS campus continues to be evaluated by engineers and construction professionals.