PALMER - Belchertown football coach John Mayo said his team was a strong second-half squad all season.

The Orioles showed that Thursday morning in their season-closing 41-6 victory over Pathfinder at St. Joseph's Park in Thorndike. Belchertown took a 5-4 lead in the Thanksgiving Day series.

The Orioles (4-7) led just 8-6 at intermission before outscoring the Pioneers 33-0 in the second half. Belchertown scored 13 of those points in the first 1 minute, 39 seconds of the third quarter, essentially putting the game out of reach.

"That was the best half of football we've played in two years here," said Mayo, who has coached the team for two years.

"We've played better in the second half all of our games this year, I don't know why," Mayo added. "Last year, we were a better first-half team."

Two fumbles by Pathfinder in its own territory set the Orioles up with great field position. A squib kick by Chris Ladd to open the second half was fielded, then fumbled and recovered by Belchertown.

Alex Presnal scored from 10 yards out a few plays later. Presnal played his second straight game since returning from a leg injury. With him, the Orioles were 4-1.

After the second Pathfinder fumble, Alex Izatt took a handoff on a reverse and went in for a 15-yard score to increase Belchertown's lead to 21-6.

"It's nice to be able to run some reverses and run by people," Mayo said. "We're not a big team."

The Orioles' defense played an outstanding game, limiting the Pioneers to 148 total yards and minus-9 on the ground.

The only Pathfinder score came on a 76-yard touchdown pass from Greg Pobieglo to Ryan Martinek in the first quarter.

"We had seven days to prepare, and their offense was pretty simple, so we just keyed on those things," said senior middle linebacker Joe Miller. "We played one heck of a game."

Miller was named most valuable player of the game for the Orioles. He made 19 tackles and was in on a couple of sacks. Miller finished the season with a team-high 124 tackles in 10 games. "This means a lot," Miller said. "Last year we had a tough loss on a late field goal. Every year, we build the foundation up and up."

Mayo said, "Joe's going to be very tough to replace. He could play for any team in western Mass. He's an excellent offensive lineman, too. He's just a really good football player."

Martinek was the most valuable player the Pioneers (1-10).

The win by Belchertown had an impact on the final Division 4 football rankings in western Massachusetts, as Mohawk Trail earned the fourth playoff spot ahead of Easthampton and Franklin Tech.

Ladd completed a solid first year under center for Belchertown with 187 yards passing and a pair of touchdowns. He did throw two first-half interceptions in Pathfinder territory, but both could have been caught by his own receiver.

"I thought Chris played great," said Mayo. "We practiced a lot throwing the deep ball, and we hit some big."

Three Belchertown turnovers in the Pioneers' territory in the first half kept the score 8-6 at the break before the Orioles exploded.

"I told the line that if we lose the game, it will be because of us, so everyone stepped up," said Miller, also an offensive guard. "We smelled the blood and got going."

Mayo said. "At all levels of football, and especially this level, I don't think the other team stops you, you stop yourselves. When we don't succeed, we stop ourselves. We had great field position all day."

The Orioles received the opening kickoff and drove 67 yards in 3:03. Ladd found Izatt on a 20-yard scoring pass to open the scoring.

Belchertown senior wide receiver Travis Chartier posted a game-high 110 yards receiving on five catches, including a 37-yard touchdown in the third quarter in which he outjumped defensive back Jordan Suarez.

Orioles sophomore Jake Loughman led all rushers with 74 yards on 17 attempts. Izatt (three carries, 45 yards; two receptions, 46 yards) had a good all-around game.

The defense got in on the scoring for the Orioles late in the fourth quarter. Loughman forced a fumble by running back Jake Perron, which was scooped up by senior Evan Quinn and brought back 72 yards for the final touchdown.

It was the last game for Belchertown seniors Miller, Chartier, Presnal, Quinn, Tyler Keefe, and Jeff Grossman.

"Our six seniors are the classiest, nicest kids you'll ever want to meet, and I've been coaching for 30 years," said Mayo.

"This win gives you a bit of momentum going into the off-season," Mayo added. "If we were losing everybody, it would be a different story, but it should be a springboard."