Football Falls to Framingham
October 30, 2026
• The Rockets end the regular season 1-7 for the second straight year.
Needham football finished their season with a 33-20 loss to Framingham on Oct. 30, in a back and forth battle.
Nick Duarte, who came into the game with over 1,000 multipurpose yards, continued his strong season for the Flyers, with 322 yards and five touchdowns.
Framingham got on the board first in the second quarter with a 24-yard touchdown run from Duarte 57 seconds into the second quarter. Needham answered on their next drive on a 24-yard touchdown pass from Liam West to Mason Hark to tie the game with 9:42 left in the second.
West started for the Rockets at quarterback after Jack Ringer was injured last week against Weymouth.
Duarte wasted no time putting the Flyers back on top, as he took the next offensive snap 80 yards to the house to make it 13-7 Framingham. He scored again on their next possession, this time a 49-yarder to extend the Flyer lead to 19-7 after a failed two-point conversion.
West connected with Jayden Greenfield for 48-yard completion on Needham’s next drive, which set up a five-yard touchdown run from Preston Pinckney. Colton Harjula missed the extra point, making it 19-13 Flyers heading into halftime.
Greenfield picked off Framingham to start the second half, and Pinckney turned it into points with a X-yard touchdown run to give Needham a 20-19 lead. The Flyers responded however, with Duarte’s fourth touchdown of the game to retake a 27-20 lead.
After the Rockets turned the ball over on downs, Framingham added another touchdown to their lead, a four-yard score from Duarte to make the final 33-20.
West finished 5-for-18 with 122 passing yards and an interception, while Pinckney added 86 yards on the ground.
Framingham totaled 402 yards on the ground in the game. Needham had 231 total offensive yards.
Last year, Needham’s first win of the season came against Framingham in their regular season finale, which sparked a three-game win streak, two of which were non-playoff game wins, heading into Thanksgiving.
The Rockets, who end the season 1-7, will host the 139th annual Thanksgiving game against Wellesley on Nov. 26. The Needham Channel will be at that game to record a broadcast that will air the following day.
