Panthers eager to build from loss to Hawks

Posted

“A learning experience.”

That’s how Johnston head football coach Joe Acciardo described his team’s 34-6 loss to the four-time defending Division I Super Bowl champion Hendricken Hawks last Friday night at Hayden Stadium in what was the season opener for both teams.

The two teams had not faced each other since 1986, when the Panthers posted a 7-0 victory over the Hawks, so this match-up was very much anticipated by both squads.

“The score does not indicate it but we played them tough and I am proud of our guys,” Acciardo said. “Luckily, this loss does not hurt us in the standings, but you could really make this game an opportunity for us to go out and make this a learning experience and turn it into a positive. If we can go out and play like this against Hendricken, I think we will be all right in our division. I don’t think we will see this kind of depth and talent in Division II this year. We thought that last week was a wake up call and it was. Hendricken is a tougher opponent than last week – nothing against Burrillville – and they have so many weapons over there.”

After scoring only seven points in last week’s Injury Fund game at La Salle, the Hawks put their offense into high gear against the Panthers behind their senior quarterback John Toppa, who ran for nearly 100 yards and two touchdowns.

“We made some improvements tonight,” said Hendricken head coach Keith Croft. “The running game was going good and we saw a lot of improvements from the offensive line with some really good blocking, and all our backs were impressive.”

Acciardo and the Panthers wanted to get off to a good start and they did when quarterback Mike Caparco hit Marc Conte with a 25-yard touchdown pass over the middle for a 6-0 lead at the 8:13 mark of the first quarter.

From there, though, it was all Hendricken, as it proceeded to score 34 unanswered points. Three consecutive offside penalties against Johnston on the ensuing kick-off enabled the Hawks to gain good field position at the visitors’ 45-yard line, where Toppa would eventually score on a keeper from 2 yards out. Ryan Blais kicked the first of his four extra points and the Hawks led 7-6 and would never look back.

Early in the second quarter, the Panthers were driving only to see Billy Mueller pick off Caparco at the Hawks’ 15-yard line. A few plays later, Toppa ran untouched up the middle for an 80-yard touchdown and a 14-6 advantage.

The Hendricken signal caller took last season off from the football team to concentrate on his baseball career and has not shown any signs of rust so far in this young campaign.

“Toppa looked good running tonight,” Croft said. “He is a physical runner and he has good speed and will continue to progress and get better for us. If he can be an effective runner, he will open up some passing lanes.”

Senior Lee Moses, who was an All-State wide receiver last year, put some good moves on the Panther defense en route to a 34-yard touchdown run and a 20-6 home team lead.

The Hawks would continue to show their athleticism mid-way through the third quarter, where Gary Gibbs broke several tackles for a 10-yard touchdown run. Jake Derderian added a 7-yard score later in the same quarter as the Hawks continued to overwhelm the JHS defense.

“We spread it out pretty good tonight,” Croft said. “I think we had four or five guys catch the ball and four or five guys carry the ball. We have the depth and are just looking to build on it.”

Acciardo remained optimistic despite the outcome of the game.

“We wanted to get off to a good start and we did,” he said. “We knew there would be situations where we would be mismatched. They have a lot of weapons and it could have been worse. Hendricken is a class act. They did what they wanted to do and called off the dogs.”

Croft commented on his team’s success over the past four years.

“It has been an amazing run, we do not have any complaints,” Croft said. “We are proud of what we have accomplished and we are just as hungry this year as we have ever been. “

Both teams begin league play this Friday night, with Hendricken hosting East Providence at 7 p.m., and Johnston traveling to Max Read Field to play Tolman.

Tolman head coach Dave Caito is a Johnston football Hall of Famer. Acciardo said the Tolman coach is very creative and tough and will have his players pumped up because he is playing his alma-mater. Division I Barrington defeated Tolman last week, 35-12.

The Hendricken and Tolman games were supposed to be played at Johnston but were moved because the Panthers’ new field is still under construction.

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here