NORTHBRIDGE – Standing on the 10-yard-line along the right sideline near the north end zone of Lasell Field was Evan Carrachino, a 6-foot-tall Northbridge High School lineman. The atmosphere surrounding the 290-pound sophomore was joyful as one of Carrachino’s teammates shouted, “DO THE WORM!”

Carrachino smiled and shook his head. A dozen of his teammates began to cheer, “Go Evan! Go Evan! Go Evan!” He then looked around briefly and held up his palms as if to say he was not sure what he was going to do. 

And then it happened. It wasn’t the worm, instead, while wearing his white Northbridge helmet with maroon horns, full pads, and a maroon practice jersey with the

Evan Carrachino dancing at practice. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

bold white number 89, Carrachino broke into some sort of River Dance jig along the sideline to the delight of his teammates. 

The Northbridge High School football team has good reason to feel good these days. The fourth-ranked Rams have rolled through the first two rounds of the MIAA Division 7 playoffs, outscoring their first two opponents, Greenfield (13) and West Boylston (5), with combined scores of 83-20. They play the top-ranked team, undefeated Wahconah Regional (10-0) on Saturday at Holyoke High School at 1 p.m.

The Rams are a close-knit team and, with twenty-two seniors, are also experienced. They have played together for a long time. This strong leadership has created an incredible bond this season with one goal in mind, to make it to the Division 7 Super Bowl and to be playing at Gillette Stadium at the end of the season.

“This is a brotherhood,” said Ryan Boyce, who is a senior captain and the team’s starting quarterback. “I’ve got a bunch of brothers playing as a team.”

Rams head coach Ken Lachapelle, who has coached Northbridge for 52 years, said his team is successful because they play for each other. “I’ve got guys who are unselfish,” he said. “Well, you know, as much as we can say the stats of players, deep down, I don’t think they really care. And if they do, they haven’t shown it. We have a great team attitude.”

Tim Visbeek at practice. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

As nice as it sounds, it does take more than camaraderie to win football games. They may be modest about their individual stats, players like Boyce, Tim Visbeek, who plays receiver and defensive back, and Collin Falconer, at inside linebacker and running back, have made an impact to help the Rams achieve a 9-1 record and to reach the semifinals in the tournament. 

Boyce is ranked third overall in passing yardage in Central Mass with 1,788 yards and 17 touchdowns. Boyce is a dual threat with 808 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns on the ground. “Ryan is just dynamic,” Lachapelle said. “I guess that’s the best way to describe him.” 

Boyce’s dual abilities are a reflection on the different ways the Rams can attack a team on offense. In both playoff games, he threw for 330 yards against Greenfield, but the team rushed for 280 yards against West Boylston in the next game.

Boyce has help in the backfield with Falconer rushing for 507 yards with an average of 7.5 yards per carry and five touchdowns. Boyce’s favorite target through the air is Visbeek, who is ranked second in Central Mass with 902 receiving yards and number one with 28.2 average yards per catch.

“Well, that’s what’s good about Ryan,” Lachapelle said. “If he’s on throwing. We’ll just keep doing it. We’ll ride that horse. If not, he’s running along with Collin in the backfield.”

Visbeek said “Ryan throws good balls. You know he always finds me. It’s my job to get open.”

Both Boyce and Lachapelle credit the solid chemistry from the offensive line as the true key to their success. At left tackle is senior Liam Simoneau (5-feet-10, 200 pounds), Carrachino at left guard, junior Dom Scichilone (5-feet-8, 230) at center, Ian Gahan (6-feet-5, 290) at right guard, Ben Krause (5-feet-9, 185) at right tackle, and Trevor Foley (6-feet-4, 185) at tight end.

The Rams offensive linemen, Ben Krause, Ian Gahan, Dom Scichilone, Evan Carrachino, Liam Simoneau. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

“It’s how versatile we are,” Boyce said. “We can run the ball, pass the ball. We got a bunch of weapons and our o-line does a great job. They pay attention at practice. We can run with them. They do a great job pass-blocking. It’s like a tight bond that they have. It’s like a brotherhood with their line. You could definitely tell at practice they’re trying to make each other better.”

“They respond to the coaching well,” Lachapelle said. “They’ve been playing well as a unit.”

On the defensive side of the ball, Falconer, who has 69 tackles on the season to lead the team as an inside linebacker, said the Rams are a physical team and that “mental toughness” is the key to their success.

Lachapelle said one of the best attributes of his defense is their athleticism. “Our defense is athletic. We’re not big, but we do have decent size. We count on our quickness, especially with our outside linebackers. I think my defensive coaches prep our kids well on what our opponent is bringing to the game and they take to our coaching well.”

Lachapelle said the scouting report on Wahconah is they are a tough, physical team that likes to run with their star running back, Jonah Smith, who has rushed for 1,538 yards on the season and scored 20 touchdowns. They also use the run game to set up long passes down field to pick up big chunks of yards. As the Rams head into this, they look to be intense, physical, and to play their game.

“Personally, I need to make smart decisions on offense and defense,” Visbeek said. “As a team, we just need to play tough and physical. We’ll go out there and play at 110 percent and play every down like it’s our last.”

 

Central Mass 

Football Roundup

Grafton to Face Their Toughest Test of the Season

Grafton quarterback Tyler Dimond will be leading his team into the Division 4 semifinals. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

GRAFTON – As the undefeated Gators (10-0) set their sights on the Division 4 semifinal game against the top-seeded Scituate, senior captain Tyler Dimond said he feels surreal about his team’s chance to make the Super Bowl. 

“It’s really a unique feeling being one of four total teams left in our division,” Dimond said after his team beat Bedford (12), 35-13, to earn their way into the Final Four. “We have been very successful so far but the only game that truly matters is the state championship and we strive every day to try to get to that spot.”

The Gators will travel to Marciano Stadium in Brockton on Saturday to face Scituate, who are 10-1 on the season, at 1 p.m. Dimond said Scituate has a powerful run game and also can attack through the air. Their defense is aggressive and physical. 

“Our mindset going into Scituate is really the same as any other game which is to just give everything we have every play,” Dimond said. “We need to want this game more than them if we’re going to want to win against this big, physical team.”

Dimond said Saturday’s game will be their biggest test this season and it only gets harder the farther they get into the playoffs. “We know Scituate has some big aggressive players and some really good skill players as well,” he said. “We know they’re going to make plays, but so will we. I think we match up well against them in all aspects … We are more than ready for this challenge and have been since the offseason. We’ve worked so hard for this opportunity and haven’t come this far to not give it our all.”

Dimond said the main key to their success has been how they play in the trenches. “Overall, I have to give a ton of credit to our offensive and defensive line,” he said. “Ricky Leach, Charlie McMahon, Cooper Berube, Riley McCann, Nick Flores, Mark Kogan, and John Hamawi have controlled the line of scrimmage extremely well for us this season and deserve a ton of credit.” 

Grafton’s biggest strength this season has been about how well they start off games. They come ready to play and Saturday should be no different. “We’ve been able to score on most of our opening possessions and when we don’t get the ball first, we stop the opposing team from scoring. That has really been a big part of our success and winning.” 

Being so close to the Super Bowl and a trip to Gillette Stadium has Grafton excited about the next game. “Being so close to the state championship game is a different feeling than you could even imagine,” Dimond said. “Especially when you’re playing with the group of guys that I have the privilege of playing with. We truly are a family and it’s been such a special season but we know we have more to accomplish.”

Pirates upset Palmer to Advance

OXFORD – The eleventh-ranked Pirates stamped their ticket to the Division 8 semifinals with their 16-13 upset victory over third-ranked Palmer High School last week. This Saturday, Oxford travels to Lincoln-Sudbury High School to face the tenth-ranked Randolph squad at noon. The Blue Devils are 8-4 this season, while the Pirates are 8-2 in the South Worcester County League.