DERRY — The Wolverines junior varsity played a hard fought game against a tough Lawrence, Mass., team and came away with a 30-6 win.
The Wolverines' offense controlled the tempo of the game with more than 300 total yards. Mat Madden, Brett Connal, Brett Stuart and Nick Mazzola rushed for a combined 289 yards behind great blocks from Mike Hull, Kyle Swirlbliss, and Sean Kopetz. Luke Testa threw for 20 yards connecting with Conner Holland in the end zone for a Wolverines touchdown in the fourth quarter.
After allowing one long touchdown run to the Maulers, the JV defense made all the stops it needed to keep Lawrence to only six points. Dan Avila had 12 tackles and Mark Hanlon had eight tackles, both with fumble recoveries, and the Wolverines JV team enjoyed solid linebacker play from Derrick Coombs with six tackles and Steven Nolan with 6 tackles and a fumble recovery. The defensive line also did their part with Kyle Guilmain, Marc Hagen, and Michael Martinoli combining for 19 tackles up front.
Varsity thumped, 30-6
Lawrence came to town undefeated and the Wolverines had the task of handing them their first loss. The Wolverines' offense compiled 124 yards rushing from Manny Latimore, Billy Penta, and Jake Bernaiche. The offensive line provided great blocking from Dave Hanson, Patrick Myers, Camen Crowell, and Mike Thomson.
The Lawrence offense came out running with 24 unanswered points in the first half. The Wolverines' defense was fierce, but the Lawrence offensive line was just too big for the Wolverines. In the second half, the Wolverines came out to play football. They settled down and held strong on multiple fourth down conversion attempts to force turnovers. As a result, the Wolverines played Lawrence to a 6-6 standoff in the second half.
Key players for the Wolverines' defense included Nathan Wildman, Jacob Wharf, Matt Wied, and Joey Dicarlo.
Derry Demons
Demons PeeWee advance to state final
The top-seeded Derry Demons PeeWee football team played host to the Nashua PAL Force on Sunday, Oct. 26, in the state semifinals and came away with a hard fought 8-0 victory.
Yardage was tough to come by against a tough Force team, but Brandon Parent and Zain Demers came through with outstanding blocking to open holes for running backs Dan Lannan and Jake Burton. Burton eventually capped off a scoring drive for the Demons with a 1 yard touchdown run in the first half. After a failed conversion, it was up to the Derry defense to hold back Nashua. The stingy defense did just that led by fantastic play from Richie Berardi. Ryan Thomas, Jeremy Dietzel, Shawn Murray, Derek Zieba and David Dupont were also key components on the Derry defense, which forced a safety late in the game to seal the victory for the Demons. Derry will now face the Bedford Jaguars on Sunday, Nov. 9, for the state championship.
Mitey Mite Super Bowl a success for the Demons
Both Derry Mitey Mite teams put forth strong efforts in the Mitey Mite Super Bowl at Nashua North High School on Saturday, Oct. 25.
Mitey Mite 1 made its way deep into the field of 16 walking away with a third place trophy. In the double elimination tournament, the Demons earned victories over Londonderry twice, Milford, Derry 2 and Salem. Nathan Barnhart had big runs all day and scored several touchdowns. He also had many huge tackles on defense. Damien Flannery, Ryan Sigman and Devin Sullivan also scored for Derry.
Mitey Mite 2 also had a good day at the Super Bowl securing big wins over Hudson and Goffstown before being eliminated by Derry 1. Nico Buccieri was a force from the running back position. He had two touchdowns on the day and chipped in with a fine defensive effort. Derek St. Pierre and Mike Faragi had fumble recoveries. Faragi also had some very tough runs for the Demons.
Derry Cheerleaders strike gold
The Derry Wolverines cheerleading teams captured top honors at the Season Premiere Cheer Competition in Bedford. The varsity team placed first in its division and was named Grand Champions for obtaining the highest score at this competitive event that attracted more than 50 local teams.
Their routine received high marks for difficulty and performance value as these talented girls pulled off challenging stunt sequences and awe-inspiring tumbling passes.
The JV team performed well securing a second place trophy and entertaining the crowd with its creative routine, which included difficult stunts and a complicated pyramid. These accomplishments were especially impressive as this was their first time competing together.
Next, these teams move on to the Capital City Competition hosted by Concord High School, where they face a new set of rivals. Best of luck to both of these talented teams.
