Revere defense shines, but mistakes costly in 12–8 loss to Lynn Classical

By Dom Nicastro

For a team searching for a breakthrough win, Revere’s trip to Manning Field on Saturday morning brought both hope and heartbreak.

The Patriots battled Lynn Classical wire to wire but fell just short, 12–8, in a defensive slugfest that slipped away on mental mistakes and missed chances.

“I thought we had every chance to win,” Revere coach Lou Cicatelli said. “Another game where, again, growing pains — making a lot of mistakes mentally. Going offside, giving them a first down on a fourth and four, a third and five, happening over and over again. We just can’t do that. They’re not experienced enough yet to make those mistakes and win close games.”

Despite the loss, it was Revere’s stingiest defensive effort of the season, holding Classical to 12 points (fewest allowed this year) and stopping both two-point conversion attempts.

“The defense played very well,” Cicatelli said. “They moved the ball down the field, but we didn’t bend. We stopped the two-point conversions both times, and that kept us in the game.”

The tone was set by senior lineman Ceaser Herrera, who Cicatelli called “the catalyst all night” on defense.

“Ceaser had an unbelievable game,” the coach said. “He was all over the place on defense, and he wasn’t feeling good either — real sick. He took himself out and then put himself back in. He was in the backfield, making plays; he was just everywhere.”

Cicatelli also praised David Cruz, who returned to the defensive backfield.

“We gave him a shot, and he probably had about five or six tackles,” he said. “He made a great stick coming up from the safety position and popped the ball loose around the 40. That kind of got us going.”

The Patriots entered the game shorthanded again, with several starters unavailable, including center Bryan Maia and two-way playmaker Charles Dobre. That meant an unexpected varsity debut for freshman Chris DeAngelo, who started at center and held his own.

“Chris did a great job,” Cicatelli said. “It was his first varsity football game. He loved it. He did it well. I was really happy about that.”

Revere’s offense leaned heavily on Mario Ramirez, who rushed for about 115 yards while playing through pain. “He ran really hard,” Cicatelli said. “He’s banged up, but he stuck it out.”

The depleted Patriots relied on a rotation of younger backs. Freshman Ismael Romero-Gonzalez made the most of his carries, and Sergio Peguero added a spark with several big runs, including a touchdown on a jet-sweep counter play.

“Sergio ran a couple of jet sweeps, one for a touchdown on the counter play,” Cicatelli said. “He made some real nice, big runs during the game. That was his first time playing that position, and he had a good day for himself.”

For all the frustration, the coach said his players continue to show heart and effort in the face of adversity.

“They’re playing hard, they’re hitting, they’re running, they’re moving the football,” he said. “It’s just been a tough year. I’m trying to be positive about it. But at some point, we’ve just got to do better.”

Revere’s offense once again showed flashes of potential, cutting the deficit to 12–8 in the fourth quarter with a chance to steal it late.

“When we went down the field and made it 12–8, I thought we were going to win it,” Cicatelli said.

The Patriots (1–5, 1–3 GBL) return home this Friday, Oct. 24, for a 6 p.m. matchup with Malden (2–4, 2–2 GBL), which just snapped a three-game skid with a 22–8 win over Chelsea.

Cicatelli hopes some home cooking — and a week of cleaner football — can help turn things around.

“Finally get back home a little bit, maybe get some home cooking, and we can get this thing pointing in the right direction,” he said. “We just have to keep working through the mistakes and keep getting better.”