Saugus falls to Winthrop in first NEC matchup

By Dom Nicastro

Saugus High School’s football team endured a tough night at Miller Field in Winthrop on Friday, Oct. 4, falling 42-12 to the Vikings in a game that got away from them early. The Vikings, capitalizing on key special teams mistakes, built a 42-0 halftime lead, leaving Saugus scrambling for answers. With the loss, Saugus drops to 1-3 on the season, while Winthrop improves to 3-2.

Playing without two of their biggest contributors, Cody Munafo and Ryan Shea, who were unavailable, the Sachems struggled to find rhythm early. However, Head Coach Steve Cummings saw glimmers of hope in the performances of several younger players who were thrust into larger roles due to the absences. “It’s tough when you go into a game missing those two guys,” Cummings said. “But we had some young guys that had an opportunity to step up, and at the end of the day, we were able to identify a couple of guys that can really help us as a football team moving forward.”

Winthrop’s offense wasted no time asserting itself. Running back William Murphy exploded for a 57-yard touchdown run on the Vikings’ first possession, setting the tone for the night. He would add two more touchdowns in the first half, including a screen pass. By the end of the first quarter, Winthrop had a commanding 21-0 lead.

Special teams errors from Saugus made it difficult for the Sachems to climb back into the game. A blocked punt and a mishandled snap on another punt gave Winthrop prime field position, leading to two more quick touchdowns, including a 1-yard run by Murphy to extend the lead to 42-0 at halftime.

“One of the guys that was out this week was our long snapper, so we were filling in that position,” Cummings said. “I didn’t think the snaps were particularly bad, but we’ve got to protect better. We gave up a blocked punt that gave them good field position, and then we mishandled a snap for some more bad field position. And we misplayed a kickoff, which allowed them to score again and get the ball right back.”

Despite the lopsided score at the half, Saugus showed some resilience in the second half. Running back Anthony DeAngelis broke through for a 7-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, putting the Sachems on the board. In the fourth quarter, sophomore tailback Pablo DeJesus added a 1-yard touchdown, capping off his impressive performance in a larger role. “Anthony played really well,” Cummings said. “He’s usually one of our blocking backs, but with Cody not being available, he stepped up and ran the ball hard. Pablo was another guy who had an opportunity and really took advantage of it. He’s been doing well at the JV level, but he showed us something. He hit the holes, didn’t tiptoe, and put his head down to grind out some tough yards. He’s going to have an increased role with this football team moving forward.”

Although the result was disappointing, Cummings emphasized the learning opportunities that a young team like Saugus can take from a game like this. “We’re a young football team, and we’re going to make some young mistakes,” Cummings said. “When you have a lot of younger guys on the field than you expected to, those mistakes are going to show up. But in the long run, these are things that will help us get better. Guys will see the mistakes they made and learn how to get sharper. We’ve got to keep working.”

Looking ahead, Saugus has little time to dwell on the loss, as it prepares to host Salem on Thursday, Oct. 10, at 6:30 p.m. The Witches are coming off a 35-14 loss to Gloucester and stand at 2-2 on the season. They did go to the Super Bowl last season.

Cummings knows his team will need to bounce back quickly and clean up their errors, especially on special teams. “Salem is a tough team,” Cummings said. “They went to the Super Bowl last year, and they’ve got a few guys who are just hard to deal with. They’re doing some of the same things they did last year, but they’ve got some different guys. They do a nice job of getting the ball to their playmakers in space, and they take shots when they need to. We’re going to have to be on our keys and play sound football in all three phases. When we do, we’re pretty good. When we don’t, things unravel fast, especially on special teams.”