THE LHS offensive line set the tone for Lynnfield’s attack in their 38-7 win over Pentucket on Friday night at Pioneer stadium. Pictured is Anthony Morales (54), Walter Radulski (72) and Alex Baldini (50). (Courtesy Photo)
Update post publication:
Lynnfield defeats Ipswich 42-0 (Oct. 6)
By JAMES CRANNEY
LYNNFIELD – We have barely gotten into the month of October, and the 2023 Lynnfield Pioneers have already sent a strong message to the rest of the Cape Ann League.
Last Friday night, after beginning the season with three consecutive dominating performances, the 3-0 Pioneers welcomed 2-1 Pentucket and decided to make it four. After a late surge in the 2nd quarter, Lynnfield cruised in the second half to a 38-7 victory.
With the Pioneers averaging 39 points per game, Pentucket knew they needed to keep Lynnfield’s red-hot offense on the sidelines. In the early stages of the game, the Panthers did just that.
Pentucket took nearly 6 minutes off the clock in their opening 12-play drive. However, on that 12th play, the Pioneer defense showed they might bend, but would not break. Heavy pressure up front on 4th and 3 forced Panthers quarterback Luke Zavaski to throw an errant pass over his receiver’s head in the endzone.
Lynnfield finally got their first attempt on offense with 5:52 remaining in the 1st quarter. As they had done in their previous three games, the Pioneer offense found the end zone on their very first possession.
Junior quarterback Tyler Adamo (13-16, 224 yards, 2 passing touchdowns, 1 rushing touchdown) kept the series alive on two critical 3rd down plays with a 6-yard scramble and a 7-yard pass to senior captain Joey Cucciniello (3 catches, 60 yards, 1 touchdown). After driving it to the Pentucket 30-yard line, Lynnfield faced another 3rd down and needed 15-yards to move the chains.
Adamo wanted more than just a first as he heaved the ball to the left corner of the endzone. That is where Cucciniello was there again to haul in the 30-yard touchdown pass giving the Pioneers a 7-0 lead.
The Panthers caught a huge break on their second drive when a high fluttering Zavaski pass was tipped by a defender into the hands of Pentucket receiver Caleb Meisner. With nothing but green grass in of him, Meisner darted down the sidelines for a 72-yard score to tie the game 7-7.
Lynnfield relinquished a great deal of momentum on the long touchdown play, but the home team wouldn’t flinch.
The Pioneers quickly found themselves back in Pentucket territory following an 18-yard Adamo pass to senior Ethan Francis (4 catches, 35 yards) and a 23-yard pass to Cucciniello. After driving the ball to the Panthers 10-yard line, Adamo called his own number and ran it in to take the lead back.
“We were pleased to see how our guys were able to have the ‘next play mentality’ after that tough break on that deflection,” stated Pioneers head coach Pat Lamusta. “Our team is maturing as the weeks go on. We discussed how adversity will play a role as we face some tough competition down the stretch.”
It looked as if Lynnfield would take their 14-7 lead into the second half, but some last-minute special teams magic would break the game open.
Returning to the lineup after battling an injury, junior Jared Bernabei executed a perfect coffin corner punt stranding Pentucket at their own 1-yard line. With only 17 seconds remaining in the 2nd quarter, Zavaski threw another high pass but this time it wasn’t deflected as junior Spencer D’Augusta snatched it for his 5th interception of the season. Only 3 seconds remained before halftime so coach Lamusta trotted out junior kicker Massimo Lograsso (5/5 PAT’s, 1/1 field goals) who split the uprights on his 38-yard attempt giving the Pioneers a 17-7 lead at halftime.
“Jared’s punt was awesome, you don’t see many inside the 10 like that so we were thrilled to potentially have another shot with good field position,” commented coach Lamusta on the Bernabei punt which set up the field goal adding, “Massimo LoGrasso is a master at his craft and has stepped up for us in both point scoring but definitely with kickoff coverage.”
In addition to his punting skills, Bernabei also showed he can do much more with his legs. Lynnfield hit the ground running in the second half when Bernabei took the first handoff of the 3rd quarter and turned it up field for a 42-yard gain. The drive ended with a 1-yard Niccolo Antidormi (7 rushes, 18 yards, 1 touchdown) rushing touchdown, but Bernabei would end up leading the team in rushing gaining 124 yards on the ground on 9 carries.
The Pioneers imposed their will for the remainder of the game winning 38-7 and moving to 4-0 on the season.
With a chance to reach 5-0 for the first time since 2017, Lynnfield will return to Pioneer Stadium next week for a date with 0-4 Ipswich. While the home team will be heavily favored for this Cape Ann League matchup, coach Lamusta knows nothing is guaranteed in high school football.
“We want to take all our opponents seriously regardless of record, so we will continue to push to become a more efficient practice team during the week. Ipswich always plays downhill and they definitely have some speed and size this year, so we cannot take them lightly.”