It may not have the local interest that taking on Marshfield would have, but playing Atlantic Coast League tri-champs, Dennis-Yarmouth, will be the first step for the Dragons as they go for their second Super Bowl crown in the last three years.

The semifinal game will be played on Tuesday night in Weymouth at 5 p.m. A win over the Dolphins will pit Duxbury against the winner of North Andover/Concord-Carlisle on Saturday at Gillette Stadium, tentatively scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

While the outcome of the Turkey Day game had no bearing on the Dragons’ tournament appearance, the victory did even their series with Marshfield at 12-12-2.

With its first-half offense sputtering like the Patriots, Duxbury found themselves trailing at halftime, 10-7, when sophomore Brendan Doherty booted a 25-yard field goal as time expired.

While both teams could do nothing on their first offensive series, big defensive plays by Duxbury’s Dennis Maguire on fourth down and an interception by Marshfield’s Jonathan Fraser were the major reasons neither team could get untracked in the first quarter.

While the Duxbury offense is noted for its big-strike capabilities, it was the Ram offense that provided the first big offensive play of the morning, as junior Bryan Mey turned the corner on a sweep down the right side and rambled 40 yards for a 7-0 lead after Doherty’s PAT went over the crossbar.

Unaccustomed to trailing, the Dragons came right back on a Kane Haffey-led drive with passes to Andrew Buron and Don Webber that put the ball deep into Marshfield territory. With the ball at the 6-yard line, Haffey called his own number and tied the score at 7-7 with 4:11 left in the half.

Whatever was said in the locker room at halftime seemed to register with the Dragons, as Duxbury took the kickoff and moved all the way down to the one-yard line where Henry  Buonagurio took a shot that separated him from the ball.

“We didn’t change up anything at halftime,” said Duxbury Coach Dave Maimaron. “We just told the kids that we have to do what we do and stick with the game plan.”

The Duxbury defense held once again, getting the ball back at its own 37-yard line with 2:20 to go in the third quarter.

Haffey went to work again, engineering a 12-play/63-yard drive that was highlighted by a 9-yard pass to Webber and a 13-yard inside reverse to Matt Hallisey, and resulting in a two-yard TD run by Buonagurio for a 13-10 lead. Maimaron called for a fake on the extra point attempt and the direct snap went to Tucker Hannon, who found Reilly Naton in the left flat for the two-point conversion.

It was three and out for the Rams on their next possession, as they punted the ball away with 4:37 left in the game and the ball on the Marshfield 40-yard line.

On the first play from scrimmage, Haffey broke through several tacklers on the left side and took off down the sideline for 52 yards before being brought down at the eight-yard line.

The drive stalled as Brendan Connolly came on for a field goal attempt from 25 yards out, only to see it blocked by the Rams with 3:32 remaining.

The dink-and-dunk offense that Coach Lou Silva said was his team’s bread and butter took hold, as QBs Fraser and Mark Pomella methodically marched the Rams down the field and into Duxbury territory at the 40-yard line with just over a minute left in the game.

At this point Denis Maguire made a huge sack of Fraser causing him to fumble. But the officials ruled he was down and the Rams kept possession. The clock now became the Rams biggest enemy, as they could not get inside the Duxbury 29-yard line as time expired.