RallyNorth.net

Power Players, November 12, 2007

Every Monday RallyNorth.net will salute bone-crunching linebackers, elusive running backs, immovable linemen and rocket-armed quarterbacks from the 37 area high school football teams. We've dubbed them Power Players and you won't want to miss who the best and the brightest were from the weekend's schoolboy gridiron action.

Mike Nazzaro, Masconomet: Senior two-way lineman was a beast, causing two forced fumbles, recovering one of his own fumbles and picking up a pair of sacks as the Chieftains crushed Triton, 31-7.

Rashad Sims, Beverly: Emerging junior back ran for 166 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 14 carries in an emergency role in the Panthers' home setback to Winthrop.

Jordan Kelly, Swampscott: Talented wideout caught a pair of touchdown passes, good for 26 and 3 yards, as the Big Blue wrapped up the NEC Small title with a 26-3 win over Danvers.

Nate Masterson, Hamilton-Wenham: Senior captain showed his on-field leadership in a 13-0 shutout of Hamilton-Wenham, leading the Generals defensively while also scoring both of his team's touchdowns and kicking the extra point.

Ray Lamarre, Pingree: Helped cap the Highlanders' season off in style by rushing for a pair of touchdowns in Pingree's 42-7 blowout win over Dexter.

David St. Pierre, North Shore Tech: Sophomore signal-caller completed 11 of 23 passes for an even 200 yardsd, including a 22-yard TD strike to his favorite receiver, Cam White, as the Bulldogs were edged by Greater Lowell, 29-22.

Sam Perlow, Marblehead: Despite a blowout loss at home to Saugus, Perlow made the Magicians' biggest play, taking in a pass and galloping 77 yards for a fourth quarter score.

Kevin Skop, Peabody: Intense defender picked off a Lynn English pass and rumbled 45 yards the other way for a touchdown in the Tanners' home loss.

Nick Salvo, Masconomet: Junior kicker, who has proven to be one of the area's most consistent booters, had a 22-yard field goal and was 4 for 4 on extra point attempts in his team's triumph over Triton.

Jimmy Cadogen, Ipswich: Hard-nosed running back broke the goal line from a yard and 5 yards out in the Tigers' 35-13 setback at Amesbury.

Bobby Tarr, Bishop Fenwick: In the second-to-last game of his brilliant career, Tarr rushed for 312 yards and four touchdowns as Fenwick blasted Cardinal Spellman, 34-20.

Andrew Lebowitz, Andover: On a fourth-and-inches with Valley Forge driving, Lebowitz blasted through the line and tackled the Trojans' quarterback for a loss. The junior offensive lineman finished the game with a pair of sacks, and knocked down a pass at the line of scrimmage to help the Golden Warriors come away with a 21-16 victory.

Shain Jowett, Central Catholic: Jowett scored on a 50-yard run in the first half, breaking at least two tackles. He gained 61 yards overall and ran the offense beautifully in the second half as the Raiders rallied past Methuen 20-13.

Jonathan Delossantos, Greater Lawrence: The quarterback opened the scoring when he eluded a tackler and hit Nate Adames for 24-yard touchdown pass with 6:24 left in the first quarter. One drive later, his 35-yard run set up Adames for a 19-yard touchdown. He also stood out at defensive back with a number of passes defended as Greater Lawrence clinched its first CAC Large title since 1998.

Peter Byron, Haverhill: Byron did all he could for the Hillies in their 40-14 loss to Tewksbury. He was 6-of-11 passing for 125 yards and a 30-yard touchdown to Justin Cook. He also rushed for 131 yards.

Ramon Heredia, Lawrence: Heredia did it all as the Lancers fell just short of the upset of the year in a 35-27 loss to North Andover. He was 18-of-28 passing for 241 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 41 yards on seven carries and another touchdown.

Alex Theodhosi, Londonderry: Theodhosi ended his high school career in style, rushing for 332 yards and two touchdowns as the Lancers bowed out to Nashua South in the Division 1 semifinals. Theodhosi finished the season with 2,041 yards. He and Nate Adames, who also hit the 2,000-yard mark on Saturday, became the first two to do so since the Eagle-Tribune began keeping complete records in 1995.

Mike Bartlett, Methuen: Bartlett paced the Rangers, which fell just short to Central Catholic. He scored both Methuen touchdowns, the first on a sparkling 60-yard run, gained 98 yards overall, blocked an extra point and was in on eight tackles, one of which was a bruising hit at the sideline that broke up what seemed like a sure pass completion.

Zac Iovanella, North Andover: It could be no one else. The sophomore carried a whopping 38 times for 321 yards and four touchdowns as North Andover held off Lawrence, 35-27. The Scarlet Knights gained only 88 more yards for the game.

Liam Crawford, Pentucket: With the Sachems' running game held in check, Pentucket had to pass. And Crawford, a senior quarterback-turned-receiver, caught a season-best four passes for 41 yards, his most since Week 1. The Sachems fell to Wilmington, 17-10.

Eric Guinto, Pinkerton: Guinto rushed the ball only 10 times, but he gained 130 yards in the Astros' 34-7 romp over Manchester West in the Division 1 semifinals. He had four runs of at least 20 yards, including one for a 33-yard touchdown.

Bryan Trickett, Whittier: Trickett continued to emerge as a top-flight running back. The junior had 179 yards on 16 carries, and added a pair of 62-yard touchdowns as the Wildcats bested Lynn Tech 32-20. The day put the Groveland resident over 1,000 yards for the season, with 1,036 on 158 carries.