Gridmen can’t dig out of early hole in season-opening loss to North Attleboro

MADUX IOVINELLI (No. 14) had six catches for 112 yards from fellow senior Tyler Adamo (No. 15) against North Attleboro last week. The Pioneers will look to bounce back from a Week 1 loss this Friday when they travel to Wakefield at 6 p.m. (File Photo)

By JAMES CRANNEY

NORTH ATTLEBORO – It was trouble early for Lynnfield football last Friday night.  After making the long voyage south to North Attleboro, the Pioneers fell behind early and never caught up in a 21-6 season-opening loss.

“We competed hard against a good football team,” stated Lynnfield head coach Pat Lamusta following the game. “But it was not enough.”

The Pioneers had trouble from the start failing to move the ball against the physically larger Rocketeers. After a Lynnfield three-and-out to begin the game, North Attleboro’s offense took over.

It didn’t take long for Big Red to score.

Senior quarterback Chase Frisoli rolled right on the first play of the series before finding Lucas Crovo on a 25-yard corner route. Now deep in Pioneer territory, North Attleboro turned to the running game relying on their size up front to open some holes. It only took three more plays before junior Francis Strachan forced his way into the end zone on a 5-yard carry. Big Red led early but Lynnfield’s Oliver Ventolieri only made the deficit 6 after he blocked North Attleboro’s extra point.

Continued pressure up front forced yet another Pioneer three-and-out, and with it came more points for the home team.

In this second series, the Rocketeers had a longer offensive drive. While taking nearly five minutes off the 1^st quarter clock, North Attleboro’s offense methodically worked their way downfield with a healthy dose of runs. Averaging 10.8 yards per carry on the drive, Big Red improved their lead to 14-0 proceeding a 1-yard Frisoli touchdown run and successful 2-point try.

More internal pressure sent Lynnfield’s offense back to the sideline, and another long drive of runs mixed in with passes turned the Rocketeers lead from two touchdowns to three.

The Pioneer offense finally found their footing in the closing minutes of the 2^nd quarter. In nine plays, Lynnfield marched to the North Attleboro 11-yard line, but a 4^th down interception provided Big Red with a 21-0 lead at halftime.

“The ball had to get out quick,” commented coach Lamusta on facing North Attleboro’s difficult pass rush. “The offensive line did a much better job with blitz pick up in the second half and Tyler [Adamo] and the receivers did a nice job adjusting for a quick passing game.”

As the head coach claimed, despite the early struggles Lynnfield came out with a better second half performance. Following a much-needed defensive stop, the Pioneer offense pulled into their bag of tricks.

On 1^st and 10 from their own 14-yard line, Lynnfield pitched the ball to junior receiver Dan Lemieux (2 catches, 11 yards). Instead of taking the ball up field, Lemieux stopped in his tracks and heaved a 29-yard pass to senior receiver Madux Iovinelli (6 catches, 112 yards). Big Red’s defense was finally on their heels as the Pioneers began to work their way down the field.

Senior quarterback Tyler Adamo (14-22, 149 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown) got Lynnfield inside the red zone on an 18-yard pass over the middle to senior receiver Jesse Dorman (3 catches, 52 yards 1 touchdown). Two plays later, Adamo looked Dorman’s way again throwing a high-arching 12-yard touchdown pass to the receiver making it 21-6.

Early in the 4^th quarter, the Pioneer offense made their way back to the red zone.  This time, Adamo would not be able to connect with Dorman on a critical 4^th and goal play. North Attleboro took over on downs and refused to relinquish the ball back to the road team.   

Lynnfield now sits at 0-1 after the 21-6 season-opening loss, but looks to carry some of their second half momentum into Week 2.

This Friday night at 6 p.m., the Pioneers will be on the road again facing 0-1 Wakefield, who fell to Greater Lawrence Tech 29-22 on Sept. 6.

Facing yet another big and physical team, coach Lamusta knows Lynnfield will have some things to clean up.

“We need to be much sharper as we look to our next opponent from the Middlesex League who will likely also have some size on the line,” said Lamusta about the next matchup. “If we play fast, physical, and execute we can keep pace with these bigger teams, but that means mistake-free football from us. That is our mandate.”