The Harbormen capped off their Thursday night homecoming football game with a major 27-6 victory over the Whitman-Hansen Panthers. The victory moved the Harbormen to 4-1, putting them in a great position for a patriot league title. The game was won with the help of many big-time players and key players; however, the toughness and unity of the team carried them through the rough parts of the game.
Sophomore JT Reale had an amazing night scoring two touchdowns and putting him on the top of the MIAA receiving touchdown list, a great accomplishment so early in the season. JT has been a key part of the offense, especially with Junior quarterback Jake Varholak throwing him perfect endzone passes all game long. Jake’s dual-threat skill set allowed the Harbormen to run a roll-out west coast style offense mixed with short passes and the occasional QB scramble. The offensive game plan proved to be a key component of the Harbormen’s offensive success on Thursday night; however, it would be criminal to talk about the Harbormen’s offense without mentioning the running game. Backed with a three-headed monster running backs Ryan St. Croix, Chase Beighley, and Jack Stocks ran all over the Panthers. Captain Ryan St. Croix is an electric component of the offense who is guaranteed to break a couple of tackles and sprint for a first down, or even a touchdown. Junior Chase Beighley is the team’s Swiss army knife, making big plays both offensively and defensively. Chase is used as the team’s receiving back, but can also catch passes down field, and break away for massive runs with his shifty-bruiser frame. When asked about the game Chase said, “We were just more tough, it is simple. Everyone played hard and we just had too many guys to come in and make plays, like Stocks scoring the touchdown on the goal line” Stocks, or Jack Stocks is the fan favorite bruiser running back for the Harbormen. He runs hard and is guaranteed to shove forward for a yard or two, like he did when he scored the Harbormen’s third touchdown of the night.
Defensively the Harbormen shined against Whitman-Hansen. There is no defense tougher in the Patriot League than Hingham’s headed by Captains Andy Ross and Alex Levy at linebacker big hits were made all over the field on Thursday causing extreme wear and tear from the Panthers. Junior cornerback Hudson Trezza was relentless during the game and would not let any receiver get off easy. Physical play and quick feet from Hudson caused a lockdown left hand section of the field which funneled the Panthers offense right into Andy Ross for a big hit. The defensive line applied pressure all game long, completely dominating the trenches and locking down the Panthers’ running game.
The importance of Special Teams cannot be understated in the Harbormen’s win with a major play coming from Fin O’Brien when he turned a kick return into an electric touchdown in the 2nd quarter for the Harbormen. The student section lit up and the kick return gave the Harbormen a major psychological advantage. Red Army member Sophomore Matt Volpe said, “Fin’s return was awesome. Even on a school night the Red Army still showed up and went crazy” Matthew’s opinions reflect that of many Hingham High students that this year’s student section has been electric at every home game. Another key player from Thursday night’s game was star kicker Henry Sellers. Henry knocked down 3 extra points, which may seem insignificant, however, Henry’s play has proven to come in clutch in big games and will continue to propel the Harbormen to more victories down the line.
