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Knights fire off in Fall 2

Saturday, March, 13 By Jeff Hamrick

NORTH ANDOVER – The way the Fall 2 season opened up Saturday afternoon, it looked as if North Andover had last played a football game a week ago instead of Thanksgiving Day 2019.

The Scarlet Knights showed little rust, scoring on their first three possessions en route to a 28-point halftime lead that turned into a convincing 35-14 victory over Chelmsford and North Andover’s first win since Nov. 8, 2019.

“This was worth the wait 100 percent,” said senior quarterback Will Schimmoeller, who threw three scoring passes. “We were waiting however long, and we finally got out here and got some work done.”

North Andover quickly got to that work, taking the game’s opening drive 50 yards with Steven Ferullo doing the honors from a yard out. It was the first of five short fields the Knights took advantage of.

They needed only 47 yards on the ensuing possession that began with an 11-yard Jake Wolinski run and ended with his 25-yard sweep.

“We were executing,” said Wolinski, a wide out who led the team in rushing (79 yards on 10 carries) and receiving (63 yards on two receptions). “Everyone was doing their jobs, and we were physical and tough. We do all those things right and good things will happen.”

After the running game built the lead, North Andover went to the air for its final three scores.

Nick Ankiewicz capped the team’s third possession with a 10-yard reception off a Schimmoeller throw back on a fourth-down bootleg early in the second quarter.

The Knights had their longest drive on their fifth and final first-half possession, going 63 yards on five plays, the last of which was a 40-yard completion from Schimmoeller to Wolinski on a corner route with 2:23 left in the half.

“The line was just pounding the ball down their throat,” said Schimmoeller, who threw for 112 yards on six-of-11 passing. “And (Chelmsford) couldn’t really stop it which obviously opened the pass eventually. So, it was a great job by the line that really opened everything up.”

Outgaining the visitors 218 to 46 in the first half, there was little North Andover coach John Dubzinski could find wrong at the break.

“We got off to a great start,” Dubzinski said. “The offensive line blocked really well from the point of attack. The backs ran hard, and Will did a great job managing the game, getting the ball to the right guys.

“On defense we rallied to the ball. I think we did a good job in the interior. We limited their big plays and built a good lead which helped our offense really well.”

North Andover removed all doubt after stopping the Lions on fourth down at the Chelmsford 27 on the first possession of the third. After an incompletion, Schimmoeller found Ferullo for 7 yards before hooking up with AJ Lawrence for a 20-yard score that started the running clock.

“This year, we don’t have a state championship or anything like that,” Schimmoeller said. “So, our goal is to win the MVC, but we have to take it one game at a time. We can’t get ahead of ourselves, so all we’re thinking about right now is Billerica (at home next Saturday).”

Dubzinski was quick to give his players the credit for the season’s successful start.

“The kids did a great job from Day 1,” said the sixth-year coach. “They’ve been ready to work. They take the coaching and support their teammates. They love being out here. They were jumping to play … The kids had to be held accountable because we really couldn’t have any access to them, and they did. They organized things in the offseason to get them ready for this.”