Special Delivery: Vikings defeat Essex Tech, 28-18, in season opener

There were several memorable football plays Friday night in the village of Hathorne in the town of Danvers, which is the home of the Essex Tech Hawks.

There was the game-sealing interception by Dom Farrell and a Nate Previte-inspired drive in which the senior running back carried the ball on four consecutive sweeps, the final one into the end zone for a key touchdown with 8:38 left to play.

But the true standard of excellence in the Vikings’ 28-18 victory over Essex Tech was the play of the Winthrop special teams.

All third-year placekicker Dom Spinale did was go 4-of-4 on PATs, deposit a Scottie Scheffler-caliber chip for an onside kick (that was recovered by Farrell), and make a key fourth-down tackle on defense.

Johnny Ferrara scored on an exhilarating 85-yard kickoff return (see related story) while Farrell continued his punting assignments in noteworthy fashion, including a pin-the-Hawks gem to the 4-yard line, helped by an athletic maneuver from Desmond Cassidy to prevent a touchback.

All of which made head coach Jon Cadigan – who is also the special teams coach – very happy.

“We did a good job on special teams,” said Cadigan humbly. “And in the first game of the season, it’s hard to predict how you’re going to execute because you don’t do any live special teams’ play in the scrimmages. Obviously, our guys handled it well.”

Winthrop built a 14-0 lead at the half. Cassidy’s seven-yard run accounted for the first TD of the season while Farrell bolted for a 45-yard TD run in the second quarter.

Essex roared out of the starting blocks to start the second half, immediately closing the gap to 14-6. But Ferrara answered on the ensuing kickoff, going 85 yards to help make it 21-6. Essex struck right back on a 66-yard run, the third touchdown in a span of 32 seconds.

Essex scored with 10:18 left in the fourth quarter to make it 21-18. But Previte took control on the next possession, highlighted by a 55-yard run to set up his own touchdown three plays later.

Farrell closed the door with an interception, and the Vikings were Week 1 victors.