Seth Sacco shines, but Vikings fall to Danvers High, 27-13
By Cary Shuman
Senior captain Seth Sacco had an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and 16 tackles at linebacker, but Danvers’ two-crucial fourth-down conversions for first downs were the difference in the Falcons’ 27-13 win over Winthrop at Dr. Deering Stadium.
Sacco’s jaunt to the end zone on a squib kick to start the second half – keyed by a fantastic block by Sean Dolen – was the most electrifying moment of the game. Sacco turned on the jets in front of the Winthrop sidelines and was off to paydirt.
Nick Romano’s powerful, two-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, followed by Domenic Spinale’s PAT closed the gap to 20-13.
Winthrop appeared to have forced a punting situation by Danvers who had a 4th-and-2 at its own 40-yard line, but Falcons’ coach Ryan Nolan, after a timeout, opted to go for it, and the hosts converted for a first down and more importantly, control of the football in a one-possession game.
“We had two opportunities on their final drives to stop them, and after one of the fourth downs, I told the team in the huddle, ‘we’re going to stop them here, go down the field, and we’re going to score and go for two (points) and that’s going to be the game.’ That’s how I felt.”
In fact, the Winthrop offense moved the football well throughout, sparked by its trio of backs, Sacco, Dolen, and Romano, and the leadership of quarterback Charlie Ferrara (4 for 8, 43 yards), who had a big 23-yard completion to Sacco into the red zone.
Winthrop trailed 13-0 at the break after committing a turnover late in the first half.
“The offense that Danvers runs, you can’t afford to lose possessions,” said Cadigan. “And this was a one-possession game in the fourth quarter. It’s frustrating, but there were definitely signs that we were playing better offensively.”
Sophomore running back Zachary Fultz scored all four of the Falcons’ touchdowns in the game.
Romano’s “tough” touchdown run
Nick Romano’s touchdown run showed that a one-on-one tackle is not an easy assignment for a defender.
“Nicky is a tough kid to bring down,” said Cadigan. “On his touchdown, it was him [Romano] and the linebacker, and he ran the linebacker over. I think this game showed what we have in the backfield with our three backs. We just have to keep getting better at executing to give our running backs chances.”
Seth Sacco was the winner of the Vikings’ Black Shirt Defensive Player of the Game award. Desmond Cassidy had 15 tackles, 4 solo and 11 assists. Sean Dolen had 14 tackles, 9 solo, 4 assists, and 1 TFL.
Winthrop’s challenging schedule
The Vikings’ non-league schedule has been imposing, with three of the teams undefeated (Tewksbury, Shawsheen, and Danvers) and the other a 3-1 Northeast team. Both Tewksbury and Shawsheen are ranked No. 1 in their respective divisions.
“I always want to play a tough schedule, but I didn’t envision playing this tough of a schedule, but I do think there is a silver lining in terms of the schedule,” said Coach Cadigan. “Our whole message now is that we’re 0-0 and we’re starting league play this week. Everything is still in front of us. We can still win the conference, and we can still go to the playoffs, you can still do all the things you want to do. And now we’re playing in our weight class. We’ve been punching up the first four weeks, and now we’ll see if our schedule has helped us.”