Swampscott’s football playoff hopes came to an end Friday night with a hard-fought loss to Archbishop Williams in the opening round of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) Division 5 postseason.

“They played a tough game right there,” the Archbishop Williams announcer said at the end of the game. “One of the top defenses in the state right there for Swampscott.”

The matchup pitted 11th-seeded Swampscott (6–2) against 6th-seeded Archbishop Williams (8–0). The Braintree-based Bishops came into the game undefeated and proved why, edging out the Big Blue to advance to the next round.

Back in Swampscott, fans gathered at Blocksidge Field for a community watch party hosted by the Recreation Department. The away game was shown on a big screen, with Big Blue Youth Football volunteers serving snacks from the shack.

Swampscott struck first in the second quarter when senior co-captain Will Bush broke through the defense for a 55-yard touchdown run. Sophomore Will Rowe added the extra point, giving the Big Blue a brief 7–0 lead. 

Archbishop Williams responded quickly, with a 40-yard touchdown and a successful two-point attempt to take an 8–7 lead into halftime.

Archbishop Williams held onto its advantage through the second half to secure the win, 14-7. The Bishops will move on next week to face the winner of the Hanover (3rd seed, 5–3) vs. Weston (14th seed, 6–2) matchup, which kicked off Friday evening.

Despite the loss, Swampscott’s strong regular season and playoff appearance capped another competitive year for the Big Blue program. 

Head Coach Peter Bush previously said that the team’s first game – and loss – of the season, against St. Mary’s High School, was partially due to the challenge of replacing last year’s 16 graduating seniors.

“I’d like to say we go into every game fully prepared, but I don’t think we were fully prepared again for that game as we were breaking in a lot of new players,” Bush previously said. “I don’t think we were necessarily outplayed, I thought we were kind of out coached a little bit. We didn’t really have the kids as ready as they needed to be.”

The team also lost to Melrose High School 6-20, but won all other games including two shut outs against Saugus Middle High School (34-0) and Salem High School (33-0). Bush had also called the Winthrop High School game the most challenging prospect this season for the team, which Swampscott won 28-20.

The Big Blues will play against Marblehead High School, at the latter’s Piper Field on Thanksgiving at 10 a.m.