Stoneham Sprints To Division 6 North Title

STONEHAM - You can't argue with success, and you certainly shouldn't argue with Stoneham coach Bob Almeida after the Spartans won a second straight Division 6 North title Friday.

Following Stoneham’s 49-14 win over Hamilton-Wenham, Almeida said the credit should go to the guys without the ball.

“We knew going in we had some really good backs but to be honest with you the offensive line and tight ends blocked their butts off, and so did the backs,” said Almeida. “All 10 guys not carrying the football are doing their job. They’re very physical and they take it very seriously.”

Yes, coach, but it's hard to take your eyes off No. 26.

Christos Argyropoulos, Stoneham's mega-talented running back, ran for five touchdowns and 197 yards on 17 carries against a Generals' defense that knew he was coming but couldn't stop him.

Led by Argyropoulos and a devastating ground game, Stoneham beat the Generals for a second straight time in the final, but this time by a far greater margin than last year’s 20-18 final. In three tournament wins, Stoneham has scored 55, 48, and 49 points.

The Spartans advance to the state semifinal next weekend where they will face the winner of Saturday’s Division 6 Central final between Littleton and Blackstone-Millville. A win then, and it's off to Gillette Stadium for the Super Bowl.

After performing with near flawless precision in their 10-0 season, Stoneham opened the game by fumbling the ball away 15 seconds in. But it was three-and-out for H-W and soon Stoneham took over.

Six plays later Seth Russell (10 carries, 108 yards) ran it in from 39 yards and a 6-0 lead. H-W turned the ball over on downs, and it soon became 12-0 after one quarter after Argyropoulos 5-yard run.

In the second quarter Stoneham took six plays to make it 20-0 with Argyropoulos scoring on a 3-yard run. Hamilton-Wenham (7-3) cut it to 20-7 when Billy Whelan hit Cam Guyer with a 6-yard touchdown pass. At that point it was still a game and when H-W stopped Stoneham on its next possession to force a punt there was hope on the Generals' sideline. But Almeida called a fake punt and Kevin McShane took a direct snap and ran for 11 yards and a first down. Seven plays later Deshaun Chase scored from 2 yards out and Stoneham had a 28-7 lead going into the break.

Argyropoulos scored two more in the third (52 and 2 yards) and once in the fourth (20 yards), giving him 29 touchdowns in the Spartans 10 games. When hit Ian Coffey for a 25-yard touchdown pass for Hamilton-Wenham's last score.

“He really has been an amazing leader and an amazing kid,” Almeida said of his scoring machine. “He sets such a good example for everybody.”

Photo by Bob Holmes