Melrose takes 7th straight Thanksgiving win over Warriors, 34-13
Published November 30, 2018
By JENNIFER GENTILE
WAKEFIELD—The Melrose Red Raider football team once again came up victorious over the Wakefield Warriors for their seventh straight Thanksgiving victory at the 59th annual Wakefield-Melrose Thanksgiving Classic held Wednesday night, Nov. 20 at Landrigan Field in Wakefield, one night earlier than scheduled due to arctic weather conditions forecasted for Thursday.
The Red Raiders topped the Warriors in a spirited 34-13 effort, in a well-attended event that was a fitting finale for Melrose, who finishes 2018 with a winning 7-4 record. Melrose leads the overall series, 61-41-16 in a rivalry dating back 1901.
Playing in near-historic low temperatures wasn’t optimal for both teams (a brutal wind and 10-degree temperature drop at halftime didn’t help) but both teams on the field didn’t seem to mind and played 44 minutes of quality football.
“It was a good win,” said Tim Morris after the game. “We responded well when Wakefield came right out and scored, then threw the ball to mix things up.”
Melrose quarterback Brendan Fennell (10-14, 120 yards, 1 TD, 69 yards rushing) had one of his strongest games of the season while leading a strong offense. “I thought Brendan [Fennell, QB] had a good game. He’s really come into his own and his speed is a great bonus,” says Morris.
THE MELROSE Red Raider football team beat Wakefield, 34-13, last Wed night at the 59th Annual Thanksgiving Classic in Wakefield. The victory was Melrose’s seventh straight Thanksgiving win over the Warriors. (Donna Larsson photo)
It was also a big night for Melrose’s Billy Pesce (8 carries, 93 yards, 1 TD, 3 receptions, 59 yards), Andy Calvert (2 TDs), Sean Herbert (33 yards rush, 3 rec., 24 yards) all of whom provided an overall taste of next year’s team, sure to return as playoff contenders. Morris credit the bunch. “Billy [Pesce] had another great game and I was happy with his work on defense too. Sean [Herbert] made some great catches and is just fearless out there. And I also thought Kemar [Bynoe] and Dylan [Robertson] were excellent on the line.”
Wakefield, down numbers this season, played a tenacious first half but were up against some tough Melrose skilled players on both sides of the football.
“I guess the bigger, stronger program took its toll on a program that’s still trying to find its legs,” said first-year Wakefield coach John Rafferty. “But I’m very proud of our guys. They played really well in the first half. They were going after it.”
The Warriors showed signs of life on the opening possession of the game. Receiving the ball first, Wakefield quickly got to work on an 11-play drive that resulted in a 5-yard touchdown run by senior captain Danny Marinaccio with less than five minutes to go in the first. A missed point-after gave Wakefield a 6-0 lead.
In response, Melrose launched an 11-play drive fueled by Fennell’s passes to Brendan Maher followed by a big 27-yard run by Pesce, which brought Melrose to the Wakefield red zone. From there, Melrose quarterback Brendan Fennell scored on a reverse for a 6-yard touchdown. A good Kemar Bynoe kick made it a 7-6 game for Melrose with 1:36 left in the first.
In the second quarter, Billy Pesce once again came up big with a 34-yard, tackle-busting, power rush on third down that helped set up Andy Calvert’s 5-yard touchdown that made it a 13-6 game for Melrose with 4:28 left in the first half.
Wakefield answered quickly, with Marinaccio scoring on the ensuing kickoff all the way from the 20-yard line for an 80-yard touchdown. An extra point by Danny Hurley made it 13-13 with 4 minutes until the half, giving Warriors fans their most entertaining Thanksgiving game in several years.
Melrose’s Kevin Peete, however, flipped the script and proved what a weapon he is with a 35-yard halfback pass to junior receiver Sean Herbert, who moved the ball to the Wakefield 30.
“Kevin [Peete] is just an ironman,” said Morris on the play. “He does everything we ask him to do.”
Pesce and Fennell moved the ball up to the six, and Calvert took over with a touchdown run that gave Melrose a 20-13 lead at the half. Melrose also received the ball after the half and scored quickly thanks to a 33-yard run by Herbert and 25 yards hauled on foot by the speedy QB Fennell, which set up Melrose on the Wakefield seven. Pesce took the ball into the end zone and Melrose took a greater lead of 27-13 with 6:47 left in third.
The Red Raiders dominated time of possession in the quarter (8 minutes to 2 minutes) effectively taking away Wakefield’s game, then ended the quarter with another touchdown, set up by rushes from Fennell and culminating in a Kevin Peete end zone rush that made it 34-13. Wakefield lost their steam in the fourth, and the teams traded punts until the clocked expired to victory. At the end of a freezing night, Melrose celebrated their season ending in the best way: holding on to the Thanksgiving Classic trophy for their seventh straight year.
Despite the convincing win, coach Morris was complimentary of the opposition. “Wakefield is a young team,” he said. “They have freshmen starters so down the line they will be really good. They’re coming into their own.”
As for next year? Melrose says so long to dedicated seniors who leave with Super Bowl rings. That includes their captains and hard working starter Peete. Says Morris “Kevin and Dylan were excellent captains and Kemar [Bynoe] worked hard and seldom came off the field. They were quality players we were lucky to have.”
But the Red Raiders return with much of their skilled position players on tap, including both quarterbacks, Brendan Fennell and Jesse Gardiner, plus starting running backs and receivers who made all the difference on Wednesday. “We feel good coming back with a solid core of players. We also have players like Matt Hickey, Calvert, Matt Dussault, and returning linemen Jared Karelas who will make a difference. Overall, our line may be inexperienced next season, so that’s something we want to focus on, but you have to be happy with this core.”
