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Hornets look to avenge last year's loss to physical Whittier

Thursday, October, 11 By Nick Curcuru
Correspondent

The Manchester Essex football team will have revenge on its mind Saturday when it faces off against Whittier Tech at Endicott College (5:30).

The Wildcats blew out the Hornets 44-8 last season. But this season things should be different. The Hornets come in with a 4-1 record, while Whittier is 2-3 and both teams come into tomorrow's contest on a one-game winning streak. Last week the Hornets defeated Greater Lowell 23-22, while Whittier knocked off Chelsea 22-18.

Despite the difference in records, the Hornets know that Whittier is a tough foe, and they have not forgotten about last year's game.

"Whittier is a big school and they are always a tough team," Hornets senior captain Phil Gillette said. "We are looking to avenge last year's loss and show the progress that we have made as a team."

Hornets head coach Mike Athanas believes his team is in for a physical battle.

"They are a physical team that likes to pound the ball," Athanas said. "They like to set up their passing game with the run. We have to be prepared for another physical football game."

The Wildcats run a double wing offense, which features three backs. Whittier's top running back is Bryan Trickett. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior has carried the ball 80 times for 643 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging over eight yards per carry. Senior captain Craig Eaton is also a threat that the Hornets will need to deal with. He is a duel threat, amassing 200 yards rushing on 35 carries to go along with a team-leading five receptions for 100 yards.

Senior captains Matt Miles and Jeff Beauregard lead the Wildcat defense.

The Manchester Essex offense will be looking to sure up their running game this week. Quarterback Pat Orlando delivered 207 passing yards last week against Greater Lowell, but Athanas was disappointed that his team could only muster up 19 rushing yards and hopes to see a much-improved running game this week.

"We need a more balanced offense than last week," Athanas said. "We need to run a lot better to open up the pass, we can't rely on the passing game to account for all of our offense.

"But in order for us to win we need to stop the run on defense and execute for four quarters."

Overall the Hornets are coming into the game with a lot of confidence. Not only are they looking to avenge last season's loss, they are also looking to prove that they can hang with the teams from the Commonwealth Large conference. So far this season the Hornets have registered a 1-1 record against large teams.

"We have a lot of momentum going from last week's win and we need to keep it up," Gillette said. "We know we can compete against the teams from the large and now we get to go out and prove it."

KEYS TO VICTORY

Manchester-Essex

1. Keep the magic alive -- The Hornets success this season is due to their ability to make the plays when the game is on the line, both on offense and defense. In a game that is expected to be another close one, Manchester Essex needs to come up big in the clutch again.

2. Balance the offense -- Everybody knows the Hornets can pass, but they need to get their running game going to keep the Whittier defense off balance.

3. Keep playing physical -- The Hornets solidified their toughness last week when they went blow for blow against a much bigger Greater Lowell team, and they can not let up this week because Whittier is also big and physical.

Whittier Tech

1. Stop the Pass -- Nobody has been able to stop Hornets quarterback Pat Orlando and receiver Sam Cohen. The Wildcats will at least have to slow them down to have a shot at winning.

2. Don't let the Hornets seize momentum -- The Manchester Essex offense can score quickly from any where on the field. Whittier can not let that effect it.

3. Expect anything -- The Hornets offense has run numerous formations from the Power I to the Spread. Whittier needs to respect and deal with all of Manchester Essex's offensive looks to win the game.