RallyNorth.net

Revere football upends Beverly

Friday, September, 28 By Mike Grenier
Staff writer

REVERE | Every football team has its ups and downs during a long season. Beverly High has to hope that last night's game will represent its lowest point.

Lacking any kind of spark on offense, Beverly allowed Revere to dictate the flow and the physical nature of the game in a 7-0 loss to the Patriots at Della Russo Stadium.

Maybe this one shouldn't be classified as a big surprise. Revere went 0-10 in the Northeastern Conference last season, but even with a young roster, the Patriots are off to a 3-1 start this year. Meanwhile, Beverly, which ran exactly one play (a fumble) in the third quarter, fell to 1-3.

"Let me tell you, our kids smelled it," said Revere coach Lou Cicatelli. "They wanted it. I can't remember the last time we were 3-1."

Revere scored the game's lone touchdown when senior quarterback and co-captain Steve Ennamorati barged in from the 1-yard line in the final 30 seconds of the first half. David Mora kicked the extra point for the 7-0 lead.

Who would've thought that one touchdown would be enough to win it? But, offensively, Beverly kept spinning its wheels. Greg Pierce was held in check (16 carries, 61 yards) and the Panthers ran just 14 plays in the opening half and 28 for the game. And Beverly's passing game (1 for 7, 20 yards) was practically non-existent.

"Revere played hard and they were fired up," said Beverly coach Dan Bauer. "We couldn't sustain anything. Football is a game of momentum and we didn't have it. Revere played really well."

Beverly did have one fantastic opportunity to climb back in the game early in the third quarter when Revere mishandled a punt attempt and the Panthers took over at the Patriots' 4-yard line. However, Pierce was pounded on a first down run and Revere recovered the fumble on its own 2-yard line.

"I think it was our linebacker, Luis Cruz, who hit Pierce," said Cicatelli. "Cruz was kind of spying Pierce all night."

If Beverly could've made a defensive stand with Revere deep in its own end following Pierce's fumble, it still might've been able to steal a win. Instead, Revere went on a 19-play, 90-yard drive that consumed more than 11 minutes. Ennamorati ended up turning the ball over, but it was hardly disastrous for Revere, which established its superiority at the point of attack.

"We used up a lot of time and kept Pierce and the Beverly offense off the field," said Cicatelli. "That was huge." Revere didn't have one go-to running back | it had several. Anthony DeFeo finished with 79 yards on 16 carries and Victor Galli was right behind him with 73 yards on 11 attempts. Matt Gasparini chipped 52 yards on nine carries and Cruz added 20 yards on six tries.

"We knew they were going to use a lot of runners," said Bauer, "so it didn't surprise us. We just couldn't get anything going. Fortunately, we get to play again next week."

The Panthers host Peabody on Saturday. It's understood that they'll have to play much better.