Wolverines Battle Worthy Opponents in Week 4

The Windham Youth Football teams faced stiff competition at home last weekend. The Wolverines hosted Derry, Nashua PAL, Manchester East and Manchester West. The hometown teams are now at the midway point in their season and appear poised to finish strong.

Here's a recap of the match-ups:

Second and Third Grade Combined vs. Nashua PAL Force

The Wolverines 2/3 team lost at home against Nashua PAL Force in a close game that kept the crowd on the edge of their seats.  Windham's Christian Spinazola and Aidan Arinello started the day by making a couple of tough tackles. The Force, however, was able to score a touchdown early, despite gritty defensive plays by Nick Panzini, Henry Kulesza, and Brett Boucher.  The Wolverines' Arinello played inspired football. He tackled Nashua's running back on two consecutive plays and stuffed the Force's extra point try at the goal line. Windham's opponent led 12-0 early in the second quarter.  On offense, Spinazola and Adam Koza had several long carries. Running back Koza put his team on the scoreboard after avoiding several tackles and bolting into the end-zone for the Wolverines' first touchdown. Nashua scored again just before half-time.

It was clear in the third quarter that Windham had learned a few things in the first half and set out to turn the tide. Mason Rice received the kick-off and returned it for a long gain. Jake Macciche and Koza followed that up with two long carries of their own. Windham didn't score and turned the ball over on downs. On defense, Cole Peterson made several tackles during the third quarter, while Joe Hero celebrated his 9th birthday and made a number of key plays. The Force lost several yards when Hayden Kushman tripped up a running back in the backfield and Keegan Parke pulled down a Nashua ball carrier at the line of scrimmage. Joshua Sweeney came up huge with a fumble recovery to energize his team.  Spinazola continued his offensive attack and sprinted across the goal line to score Windham's second touchdown of the game. Koza added the extra point. Even though Nashua’s offense spent a lot of time near the goal line in the fourth quarter, the Wolverines' defense stood tall. Windham's Kolby Kurto made a big stop in Nashua's backfield. The Wolverines were clearly dominant late in the game, but were unable score one more TD for the victory. Bottom line, it was a great effort by all! The 2/3 team will be in Goffstown on September 30^th.

Fourth Grade vs. Derry

The 17th nationally ranked Windham Wolverines' fourth grade team played host to the 5th ranked Derry Demons. Derry received the opening kickoff and was unable to do anything on offense during their first series. Windham took over on downs and wasted no time. Curtis Shattuck ripped off a touchdown run on fourth and long giving the Wolverines an early 6-0 lead in the first quarter. The defense, led by Ethan Chicklis, Stephen Mague, Jacob George and Tyler Mueller kept Derry scoreless for the rest of the first quarter. Three minutes into the second quarter, the Demons figured out the Wolverines' defense and were able to score their first touchdown.  The game was dead-locked at 6-6. Windham went back on offense and moved the ball effectively but were stopped close to midfield by the Demons' defense. On the next play from scrimmage, Derry ran in another long touchdown to take the lead 12-6 at half-time.

Windham received the second half kick-off but continued to struggle offensively and turned the ball back over to the Demons with about 8 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Once again, Derry was able to capitalize on the good field position and scored. For the rest of the game, neither team was able to put the ball in the end-zone. The final score: Derry 18, Windham 6. 

Fifth Grade vs. Nashua PAL Force

The Windham Wolverines' fifth grade team was pretty excited to get on the field last Sunday to play the Nashua Force. Windham welcomed back Matthew Logue who returned from an early season injury. The team got off to a quick start with Jake Dunlap running for three touchdowns in the first half. The Wolverines' defense was very tough and did not let Nashua gain much ground. There were big plays early on by Jack Potter, Luke Schramm and Dylan Szostak. Nashua found themselves really fighting for yardage a number of times. At the half, the Wolverines were up 20-0 and all were treated to a terrific display by the Windham cheerleaders who performed a stunt group with a tiered pyramid. The D10 squad cheered on the Wolverines football team into the second half. Windham's defense took over and all contributed. Jake Dunlap made another trip across the goal line and Tommy Doe took a direct snap and raced into the end-zone. The Wolverines won 33-0, bringing them to 2-2 on the season.

6th Grade vs. Manchester East

The Wolverines' sixth grade team battled a tough Manchester East Cobra's team last Sunday afternoon at Windham High School. The Wolverines' offense fought for every yard. Ray Galasso, Cam Burns and Thomas Hebert showed off their scrappy running talent in the first half. Nick Mueller, Justin Boucher and Noah Lynch stood their ground on defense. Despite Windham's gutsy play, the Cobras scored four unanswered TD's in the half.

The Wolverines used their "never give up" motto to engergize themselves in the second half. Nick Kasprzack, Alex Webman and Rourke Curtin exploded off the line to make room for the running backs. Jeff Andon, Robbie Furman and Ryan Marotta took advantage and piled up several first downs. Manchester East managed to put one more touchdown on the board to win the game 35-0. 

7th Grade JV vs. Manchester West

The Windham Wolverines showed another great display of teamwork and determination as they took on a feisty Manchester West team. The game started as a defensive struggle with each team forcing punts. Running back, Joe Dunlap broke the ice at the 4:19 mark in the first quarter when he dashed into the end-zone for six. Windham's defense went to work. Joey “Cheech” Micciche sent an early message when he tackled the Raider's tight end at the line of scrimmage after a catch. Windham kept up the pressure and forced several more incompletions. Max Faro wasted no time on the Wolverines' next possession. He took the hand-off and blazed through Manchester's defense for a 65 yard TD run and put his team up 12-0. Donovan Hopkins, Tyler Folsom and Royce Belsky locked down the defense for the rest of the half. Manchester West didn't manage much offense through the second quarter. The Wolverines, on the other hand, displayed their air attack. QB Jake Byers threw a perfect pass and hit Faro in stride, deep into Raider's territory. QB Byers then connected with Donovan Hopkins for another Wolverines' TD. The two point try was good. Other highlights in the half included a Thomas Splagounias fumble recovery, stand-out defense by Tommy Costa and several catches by Jack Swarbrick. The score was 20-0 at half-time, Windham.   Hopkins made another trip to the end-zone during a lightning fast kick return to begin the second half. QB Byers hooked up with Swabrick for a great catch and the conversion. On defense, the Wolverines flexed their muscle. Brian Murdza, Faro and Costa disrupted the Manchester West offense. Windham's Jon Saklad showed off his defensive athleticism by scooping up a fumble and scoring the fifth Wolverines' TD.  Faro, Dunlap and Swarbrick made several more impressive runs for the offense and carried the ball into Raider territory. QB Beyers launched two more TD passes to Belsky and Hopkins before the game ended. It was an impressive 46-0 win for the Wolverines. 

Next Week the Windham JV team faces the Rams in Salem.   For more information on the Wolverines, go to our Facebook page or go to windhamwolverines.org.

Jon MacLean, Jim Curtin, Lou Zollo, Kelley Stewart, Carl Giardino, and Karin Gelinas contributed to this article.