RallyNorth.net

Sat, Sep 24, 2016 10:30 AM @ Greater Lawrence

Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Final
Greater Lowell	0	0	0	6	6
Greater Lawrence	0	16	7	0	23

in first varsity start, sophomore Caceras leads Greater Lawrence to win

Saturday, September, 24 By David Willis
Staff writer

WEST ANDOVER - When Jose Caceras arrived at practice on Wednesday, Greater Lawrence head coach Tony Sarkis called him into his office.

 

Reggies starting quarterback Kyle Vasconcellos, who had led the team to the playoffs last season, had suffered a separated shoulder the previous day in practice/. That meant sophomore Caceras would have to step in as starting QB on Saturday.

 

"I was nervous," said Caceras. "It took me a while to pick up everything the coaches were throwing at me. As the days went by I definitely got butterflies in my stomach. But I knew the team needed me to step up."

 

On the second pass of the varsity career, Caceras connected with Vincent Mammola on a 46-yard touchdown pass, and the young QB added a rushing touchdown later as he sparked Greater Lawrence to a 23-6 victory over Greater Lowell.

 

"We had great confidence in Jose," said Sarkis. "He was there in 7-on-7's so he had some experience throwing the ball. There were a few calls he didn't make, which is normal. It was hard losing Kyle, but we were very confident Jose could step in. And I thought he played great."

 

Caceras wasn't totally new to the varsity scene. The 5-foot-10, 180-pounder had started the first two games of the season at outside linebacker. But he admitted playing quarterback was a different kind of challenge, replacing Vasconcellos who threw for 791 yards last season.

 

"It was a different feeling," he said. "I felt like I had a different pressure. I had a chip on my shoulder coming into the game. But I trusted in my team, we came together and we got the win."

 

The nerves of Caceras were calmed early in the second, when he fired a perfect touch pass over the middle to Mammola, who did the rest for the 46-yard score.

 

"I saw him and threw it," he said. "I thought, 'Either he catches it or he doesn't but I have to go for it.' It felt good."

 

The pass also boosted the confidence of the rest of the Reggies program.

 

"I think that calmed us all down a little," said Sarkis, who added Vasconcellos could be back next week. "We wanted to call that play just to get the ball out there and get it out of the way. And it worked out well."

 

Caceras ended the game with 81 yards and the touchdown passing, and ran for a team-high 53 yards including a 6-yard score on a QB draw.

 

The Greater Lawrence defense never allowed Greater Lowell a chance to catch any rhythm. The Gryphons fumbled the ball away on their first three drives, all recovered by the Reggies.

 

Then, on the first Greater Lowell possession of the second half, Reggie Morlyn Villa delivered a massive hit on the QB to knock the ball free, and David White recovered for a fourth turnover.

 

"I thought defensively we played very well," said Sarkis. "We had one breakdown on that one touchdown, but otherwise played very well. If we can just clean a few things up we will be very tough to beat."

It wasn't all positives for Greater Lawrence, however. Returning Eagle-Tribune running back Ojany Belliard (1,500 rushed yards, 23 TDs last fall) left the game in the third quarter after having his left leg rolled up on a run.

 

"He rolled it up pretty good," said Sarkis. "We will have a better idea on Sunday when all the swelling goes down. He will ice it and we will hope it's not anything serious. We would really miss him."