Team | Final |
---|---|
Greater Lawrence | 14 |
Manchester Essex | 29 |
Friday, August, 24
By Dan Guttenplan
Staff writer
MANCHESTER | Time expired on the Greater Lawrence football team last night, but Jonathan DelaSantos kept running. He refused to concede a loss, 15-point deficit or not.
The 5-foot-7, 140-pound junior quarterback weaved through a series of Manchester Essex defenders and appeared to break into open field. DelaSantos' right knee buckled as the Reggies' sideline erupted, effectively ending the game.
DelaSantos' game-high 197-yards rushing and two touchdowns weren't enough in the Reggies' 29-14 loss at Joseph M. Hyland Field. Jared Clemenzi rushed for 94 yards and two scores for the Hornets, who improved to 2-0.
"We knew (DelaSantos) was the guy to stop," Manchester Essex coach Mike Athanas said. "We scouted him, we prepared for him, but we couldn't stop him."
DelaSantos accounted for 205 of the Reggies' 291 total yards of offense. Both of his touchdown runs | of 44 and 93 yards | trimmed two-touchdown leads to a one-score game. He also had a 45-yard touchdown run that would've tied the game late in the third quarter nullified due to a holding penalty.
"I felt great running the ball," DelaSantos said. "My teammates made their blocks. If it wasn't for them, I never would've found the end zone."
The Reggies (1-1) opened the season with an 8-7 victory over Nashoba Tech after finishing 1-10 last season. DelaSantos felt the opening-week win signified a Reggies resurgence in the Commonwealth Conference.
"I knew I was the first quarterback in a while to lead the team to a win in the opening game," DelaSantos said. "We could've won this one, but we're making the same mistakes. It shows we need to work harder in practice."
The Reggies have a week of practice to prepare for formidable Whittier | a team they failed to score on (32-0) last season. Reggies coach Tony Sarkis doesn't expect points to be at a premium this time around.
"(DelaSantos) puts points on the board," Sarkis said. "He should've had one more touchdown (last night), but it was called back. He's an excellent player. He makes good decisions. It's nice to have him on our side."
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Team | League | Overall | PF-PA |
---|---|---|---|
Manchester Essex | 4-1-0 | 8-4-0 | 301-205 |
Chelsea | 3-2-0 | 6-5-0 | 252-258 |
Georgetown | 3-2-0 | 5-5-0 | 229-243 |
North Shore | 3-2-0 | 4-7-0 | 161-213 |
Northeast | 2-3-0 | 6-5-0 | 228-175 |
Minuteman | 0-5-0 | 1-10-0 | 76-371 |
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