Published in the December 1, 2016 edition
DIFFERENCE MAKER. Senior Bob O’Donnell’s two field goals proved to be the difference maker as North Reading squeaked by Lynnfield, 21–20, on Thanksgiving Day. (Bob Turosz Photo)
By ANDREW MOUNTER
LYNNFIELD — This year, 2016, will forever be remembered as a special season for the North Reading football Hornets, a year in which they reached new heights and accomplished things no one expected they could. So when they fell behind their arch–rivals, the Lynnfield Pioneers, on Thanksgiving Day and lost their star running back for virtually the entire second half, no one should have been surprised when they refused to quit.
This game ended the only way it could have, with a thrilling rally by North Reading to win a squeaker, 21–20 on the field at Lynnfield High School as these two teams met for the 58th time on Thanksgiving.
Trailing most of the game and losing super running back Matt McCarthy on the first play of the third quarter to an apparent leg injury, North Reading stormed back before a stunned the crowd at Pioneer Stadium. For North Reading Head Coach Jeff Wall, this win was one of the most satisfying victories of his coaching career.
“With this team, I’ve never see them give up,” said Wall after the game. “They fight to the end and that’s a credit to them, they all work hard. This was probably the best team effort in the last couple of years. There were guys who, probably coming in to the game, didn’t think they were going to be the hero of Thanksgiving. It’s always great to see other kids shine when they get that opportunity. This win means a lot to us.”
A HUGE PLAY FOR THE HORNETS. Senior Bob Donohue blocked this Lynnfield punt on the first play of the fourth quarter, setting up John Merullo’s touchdown that gave the Hornets an 18–14 lead. (John Friberg Photo)
There were many heroes for the Hornets on this day in Pioneer Stadium.
The first quarter was scoreless, as both team’s defenses showed up to play in what had originally been billed as an offensive shoot–out. But both teams also kept themselves out of the end zone thanks to offensive penalties that came at inopportune times. Lynnfield finally broke the ice in the second quarter, with a 12 play, 75 yard drive that concluded with running back Anthony Murphy punching it in from the North Reading one yard line. Liam Fabbri’s extra point was true and it was a 7–0 Lynnfield lead with 7:04 left in the first half.
Before the half expired, the Green and Gold would also get on the scoreboard with a 25 yard field goal from senior captain Bobby O’Donnell, making his first three pointer of the season, to get the Hornets within 4 points with just 17 seconds remaining before halftime.
The Hornets would get the ball first in the second half and on the first play from scrimmage, star senior captain running back Matt McCarthy ran three yards but went down with an apparent leg injury and was sidelined for the rest of the game, ending his high school career much earlier then he and his teammates wanted. Despite the early exit, he still ran for 92 yards on 11 carries.
It was a bittersweet way to prematurely end the season for McCarthy, who smashed the school’s all–time rushing touchdown record this year and finished third overall in MIAA Division 2A scoring, with 147 points. McCarthy was the engine that powered the Hornet’s potent offense all season and a lot of teams would have quit when he went down, but as Coach Wall said, there was no quit in this team.
Lynnfield would get the ball back and only took five plays to score their second touchdown on a 60 yard bomb from quarterback Matt Mortellite to wide receiver Louie Ellis. Tack on the Fabbri extra point that gave the Pioneers a 14–3 lead. Things were definitely looking bleak for North Reading.
Again, a lot of teams would have folded at this point, but not the Hornets.
“The coaching staff and I told the kids, ‘you got to believe in yourself and believe in each other. If you give up, there is no chance you come back’”, said Coach Wall. “McCarthy was on the sidelines telling them ‘guys, let’s go’ and ‘if anything do it for me because I’d love to be out there with you’ and I think that spurred them on a little bit. I’ve never seen this team give up, even in the blow–out loss in the last game to Marblehead. They just don’t give up.”
The Hornets went to work and then took over the game before the third quarter ended, with a Jake Bedell 21 yard catch and run from junior quarterback Kyle Bythrow to make it 14–10. The Hornets looked like they would settle for kicking the extra point but at the last second changed the formation and kicker O’Donnell took the direct snap and rammed his way left into the end zone for the two point conversion, bringing the Green and Gold to within a field goal at 14–11, advantage Lynnfield.
So, remember we mentioned heroes stepping up earlier in the story? Cue the heroics. On the first play of the fourth quarter, senior Bob Donohue blocked a punt deep in Lynnfield territory at the 6 yard line. Then, senior captain John Merullo, normally McCarthy’s blocking full back, took the ball three yards for the go–ahead score. O’Donnell this time kicked the extra point, giving North Reading their first lead of the game, (18–14), with 9:57 left in the last quarter.
Merullo simply took over the game in the second half and Lynnfield had no answer. He would end up rushing for exactly 100 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown after McCarthy went down. Was Merullo confident in filling big shoes? “Oh yeah, the offense line was a big help. They are a bunch of guys who work hard every day and they did for me this day,” said Merullo.
The Hornets then increased their lead on a gutsy call by Coach Wall, by calling for a 40 yard field goal on fourth and 10. The hero this time was Bob O’Donnell, kicking a no–doubter through the uprights to give the Hornets a 7 point advantage at 21–14. “I wasn’t nervous at all,” said O’Donnell. “I just blocked out the crowd noise and let it loose.” Needless to say, O’Donnell’s heroics couldn’t have come at a better time.
Lynnfield appeared to have tied the game with 2:39 left in the game on a touchdown from Mortellite to Ellis, this time from 30 yards out but the extra point by Fabbri went narrowly wide left so North Reading still had the lead at 21–20 as the players on the Hornet sidelines erupted in jubilation.
But the game wasn’t over and there was still time for more heroics. Lynnfield had one final chance to win the game but Ryan Edison sealed the victory for the Green and Gold, with a nice interception at the Pioneer 30, to put the cherry on top the 2016 sundae. What a way to finish such a great and fantastic season.
Season Awards
For his a once–in–a–decade performance, McCarthy won the 2016 Most Valuable Player award from the Cape Ann League. He ran overall for 1,878 yards with 24 touchdowns, the new school record for a season. O’Donnell received the CAL Defensive Player of the Year Award as he was a dominant force the whole season, always flying around, getting to the quarterback, and never quitting on a play.
Both were also named to first team CAL All-Star team, along with Merullo and Bobby Donohue. Second team All-Stars honors went to Bythrow and Jack DeAngelo.
Congrats to the honored but also to the entire 2016 Hornet team. This will go down as one of the most memorable seasons in North Reading football history as they were the first team to win a division title since 1980 and finished with impressive 9-2 record. Good luck to the outgoing seniors, they will be definitely missed in 2017.
