September 28, 2023 By Kevin Riordan
On rainy Sunday afternoon these Raiders proved yet again they are a good foul weather team by shutting out the Needham Rockets 30-0. From the start the Raiders owned the line of scrimmage with lineman Frank Cavagnaro bull rushing his way into the Needham backfield for a sack back to the 26 yard line. Then safety Cam Forger shot the gap tackling the runner for a loss and forcing a Needham punt. On the first snap on offense (QB) Hudson Garrity pitched to (RB) Evan Tomasello who followed his lead blockers Jack Hart and Duncan Wilder to slash his way for a 39 yard touchdown taking an early 6-0 lead. On defense the Raiders continued applying pressure with sacks from Brayden Huber and Shamus Devine forcing a quick three and out for Needham.
The offensive line of Will Berkeley, Denny Costello, John Peterson, Frank Cavagnaro and Duncan Wilder consistently created a secure pocket for (QB) Garrity who threw a 37 yard strike to Shamus Devine for a first down at the 11 yard line. Under center (QB) Garrity read the defense and darted through the hole created by Peterson and Berkeley for the touchdown run to put the Raiders ahead 12-0 in the first quarter. Defensively the Raiders rarely gave Needham time to get set as Brayden Huber broke up a pass then Andy Gerlach and Mason Aframe made tackles to force a punt. On the play action (QB) Garrity rolled to his left pitching the ball to (RB) Johnny Heller who sprinted down the sidelines until he was knocked out at the 5 yard line. After a short penalty backed them up to the 10 yard line, (QB) Garrity ran around the block of Denny Costello for his second TD run of the day stretching the lead to 18-0. Back on defense the Raiders dialed up the pressure with Daniel Lovendale and Frank Cavagnaro sacking the QB and forcing a turnover on downs. Operating out of the shotgun (QB) Garrity handed off to (RB) Evan Tomasello who cut back up the middle, making multiple defenders miss for a 27 yard TD run and a 24-0 2nd quarter lead.
One of Hingham’s best moments of the game came when defensive tackle Ryan Crespi with his long wing span forced Needham to hurry their pass which was intercepted by (CB) Jack Hart who returned it for a pick six giving Hingham a commanding 30-0 lead at half time.
The second half demonstrated how deep this team is as tackle Mickey Syp made a sack followed by another from Andrew Nolan and Mason Devine shut to force a turnover on downs. The offense led by (QB) Matty Palermo provided a steady diet of run plays from Carter Karis, Emmett McCarthy, Sam Godfrey, Coen Melgoza and Ryan Fernquist. The Raiders controlled the second half anchored by their solid offensive line of Grant Riordan, Will Taylor, Mason Devine, Will Heatherington, Braden Oun, Taylor Bradl and Blake Harris. The game was capped off by defensive tackle Will Taylor crushing the running back and causing a fumble which Mason Devine recovered at midfield to secure the shutout victory and record their third shutout in a row
Next Sunday the 7th grade Raiders travel to Walpole.