Acosta, Cappuccio Lead Winthrop Past Swampscott, 21–0

The Winthrop High School rushing game has been a consistent source of success during the 2022 football season.

In the Vikings’ 21-0 victory over rival Swampscott last Thursday, it was the duo of Welvis Acosta and Nick Cappuccio who provided the main firepower.

Acosta ran for two touchdowns and was the definition of a workhorse fullback with 23 carries for 134 yards. Acosta now has 856 yards rushing for the season and could eclipse the 1,000-yard mark with another productive performance on Thanksgiving.

Meanwhile, Cappuccio provided the game’s most electrifying play on a 43-yard run to the end zone in the third quarter. Cappuccio used some great blocking up front and then darted left to race to the end zone as three Swampscott defenders tried to close the angle and make a tackle. Cappuccio finished with 130 yards rushing while averaging close to nine yards per carry.

“Nick’s touchdown was a variation of a play we were running all game with Welvis getting the ball,” said Winthrop head coach Jon Cadigan. “We switched it up and Welvis was the lead blocker and the ballcarrier was Nick.”

George Galuris was a perfect 3-of-3 on extra points, collaborating with holder Matthew Noonan, who was also effective in piloting the offense in his second start at quarterback.

Offensive Line Bounces Back With an Excellent Effort

Coach Jon Cadigan was very pleased with the offensive line’s performance versus Swampscott following the loss to Cardinal Spellman.

“I really challenged the offensive line and our skill guys to block to the whistle and finish their blocks, and you certainly saw that against Swampscott,” said Cadigan. “I really liked the aggressiveness we showed.”

The combined excellence of Matt Reardon, Phil Boncore, Alessio Marcoccio, Ryan Harris, and Danny Guaque helped produce two 100-yard performers (Acosta and Cappouccio) and more than 300 yards total on the ground.

 Evan Rockefeller made a strong debut at tight end while Daniel Thomai also took very good care of his responsibilities. Thomai made a crunching block on Cappuccio’s 43-yard touchdown run.

Early Defensive Stop a Key

It appeared that Swampscott might take the early lead with a drive deep into Vikings’ territory on its first possession. But Ryan Harris made a terrific play to end the Blig Blue’s possession when he tackled the receiver on fourth down as other defenders also closed in quickly.

“Ryan made a big play,” said Coach Cadigan.

Meanwhile, Michael Donahue ended the game in fitting fashion with a QB sack to lock up a shutout for the Winthrop defense.

Holgersen Earns Defensive Player of the Game Award

Sophomore defensive back Michael Holgersen was the recipient of the Vikings’ Black Shirt Defensive Player of the Game award.

Holgersen had a key interception to repel any chance that Swampscott had of putting together a late comeback.

“Michael played a very clean football game,” said Jon Cadigan. “He had a big interception to seal the victory. This was his most consistent game of the season against a pretty good offense.”

Tsiotos Makes Defensive Play of the Game

Coach Jon Cadigan credited junior Vasili Tsiotos for making the defensive play of the game. Tsiotos executed a “a strip sack” which is a defensive play that causes the quarterback to fumble the football behind the line of scrimmage.

“That was the biggest play of the game defensively,” said Cadigan. “I thought it really changed the dynamic of the game. We had just scored to go up 7-0. Vasili makes the strip sack, and Alessio Marcoccio recovers the football. And then we go down and score, and it’s 14-0 at the half. That was a huge momentum changer for us.”

Tsiotos and football? We’re sure Vasili has heard all the stories about his legendary family’s exploits on the Winthrop High basketball court that is now named for Chris Tsiotos.

Preparing for Revere

The Vikings are in full practice mode for the Thanksgiving game versus Revere to be played at Miller Field.

One of the storylines will be Welvis Acosta’s quest for a 1,000-yard season. The last Viking to accomplish that feat was Bobby Hubert who went over the 1,000-yard mark during his junior season. Hubert likely would have duplicated that milestone as a senior, but the season was reduced to six games due to the pandemic.