RallyNorth.net

Fri, Oct 06, 2017 07:00 PM @ Greater Lawrence

Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Final
Northeast	0	8	6	0	14
Greater Lawrence	7	24	6	7	44

Greater Lawrence opens new field with romp of Northeast

ANDOVER - The renovations shined at the opening of Greater Lawrence's new football field Friday night.

The new turf was fresh, the new scoreboard illuminated the far side of the field and the new benches were painted to match the school's colors. And to their credit, the football team looked just as good.

In front of a vibrant homecoming crowd that Principal Elizabeth Freedman commented was the biggest she had ever seen (no official number on the crowd size was available), Greater Lawrence opened its new field by dominating Commonwealth rival Northeast, 44-14.

"It's amazing. I love the new field," said junior quarterback Jose Caceres, from Lawrence. "Since my freshman year we never had a crowd like that. It was insane. The environment was crazy."

Added coach Tony Sarkis, whose team moved to 3-2: "It's a great way to open up the new field. It's a beautiful way to respect all of the Reggies that have played before us since 1968. I can't tell you how proud I am of these guys."

Caceres gave the fans something to cheer about early when he capped off his team's first drive with a 1-yard score. He finished with a team-high 134 yards on 26 carries and two scores, and also threw for 97 yards on 7 of 15 passing.

Swiss-army knife Donnie Croteau earned his game ball. He started the night by taking a reverse handoff 43 yards for a score to make it 14-0 early in the second, then threw a tight spiral to Ronaldo Arias later in the quarter for a 37-yard connection.

Greater Lawrence exploded for a 24-point second quarter to take a commanding 31-8 lead at the half.

Croteau finished with 43 yards on the ground and a score, passed for a TD and also caught a 29-yard pass on a 3rd-and-28 midway through the fourth quarter. Senior David White continued his productive season with a 33-yard touchdown run, finishing with 73 yards on six carries, and he also hauled in a team-high five catches for 56 yards.

The Reggies have outscored their opponents 86-32 over the last two games.

"We started the season off rough with a couple teams that we haven't really faced before," said Caceres. "Because of them, I give them props for helping us get better.

Defensively, Greater Lawrence allowed Northeast back Zach Sanderson to break off long TD runs of 80 and 42 yards, but limited the Knights to 227 yards of total offense (all rushing). Alex Cortes came up with a sack, and senior Marc Travers recovered a fumble.

Senior kicker Franklin Morales was a weapon. He made five out of six extra points (one was blocked), and also booted a 43-yard field goal that split the upright as time expired in the first half.

A converted soccer player, Morales has found a niche with place kicking.

"I don't know how many kids in the Merrimack Valley kick a 43-yard field goal," said Sarkis. "He's been working his butt off since his sophomore year. He's an incredible kid."

Greater Lawrence will be undefeated on its new field until the start of the 2018 season.

The Reggies' final three scheduled games are all on the road, starting next Saturday at 4 p.m. at Shawsheen.

 

 Greater Lawrence 44, Northeast Metro 14

Northeast Metro (2-3):    0  8 6 0 - 14

Greater Lawrence (3-2):    7 24 6 7 - 44

First Quarter

 GL - Jose Caceres 1 run (Franklin Morales kick), 3:31

Second Quarter

 GL - Donnie Croteau 43 run (Morales kick), 8:38

 N - Zach Sanderson 80 run (Sanderson run), 3:58

 GL - David White 33 run (Morales kick), 2:26

 GL - Ronaldo Arias 37 pass from Croteau (Morales kick), :35

 GL - Morales 43 field goal, :00

Third Quarter

 GL - Caceres 30 run (kick blocked), 5:50

 N - Sanderson 42 run (run failed), 2:38

Fourth Quarter

 GL - Ader Mezidor 1 run (Morales kick), 2:35

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

RUSHING: GREATER LAWRENCE (39-274): Jose Caceres 26-134, David White 6-73, Donnie Croteau 1-43, Ader Mezidor 6-24; NORTHEAST (31-227): Zach Sanderson 16-186, John Keats 4-22, Dillon Pineau 4-15, Connor Joseph 4-15, Nick Bell 3-(-11)

PASSING: GL - Caceres 7-15-0, 97, Croteau 1-1-0, 37; N - Bell 0-1-0, 0

RECEIVING: GL - White 5-56, Ronaldo Arias 2-49, Croteau 1-29