The New England College football team played its first varsity game in more than 50 years Saturday, taking on Plymouth State University at home on a newly built football field. The Pilgrims gained the first touchdown of the game, but Plymouth remained steady and took home the win 49-21.
There was a huge turnout at the game ranging from NEC faculty and staff, Henniker residents, and students. Many students told The NewEnglander that the return of football to NEC is exciting.
“It’s pretty cool, and I’m happy to see the turnout with how many people showed up,” said Senior David Skeete. “It should be a good time. I hope they win this game and have a great season.”
The new NEC Cheerleading team also took the field for the first time Saturday. The sport was added this year and will begin varsity competition next year.
“It’s super fun, I was really hoping they were going to make a cheer team, so when they did, I jumped right to it, and it’s a great group of girls,” said Sophomore Cheerleader Peyton Holmes. “NEC’s done a wonderful job, the tailgate looked awesome, and just the energy here and everyone here is really cool.” (Click here to see the interview!)
Coach Stephen Lockett said despite the loss, the game was an important milestone for the team.
“It was exciting, the crowd came out today, the weather held off, it was a good experience, we just need to keep on developing, learning, and getting better. This was the first time that we’ve really been able to play against another varsity football team at this level. We’ve got some things to build and work on, but all around it’s just learning week by week, getting a little bit better and seeing what this league’s about and just improving our game to that level.”
NEC will host the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Saturday, September 13 at 2:00 p.m.
