Everett football seniors suit up for one last time as scholastic athletes in the annual Shriners, Agganis games

MacKenzie, Papa, LaMonica will be teammates once again at AIC in the fall

By Joe McConnell

Standout North Shore high school football seniors once again had the opportunity to play the game they love so much one last time as a scholastic athlete this month, when they were on the grand stage against their all-star peers. For some, they were lucky enough to be chosen for two traditional all-star games: The Shriners Classic at Bentley University on June 15, and the Agganis All-Star extravaganza at Lynn’s Manning Field on June 26.

The North defeated the South in the Shriners game, 21-17. The Agganis game took place after press deadline.

The Everett High School football team had its share of all-stars for both contests after winning another Greater Boston League (GBL) title with a 6-0 record under the direction of first-year head coach Justin Flores last fall. They were 9-2 overall.

However, the Crimson Tide failed to make the Division 1 playoffs, despite losing just once during the regular season. Only the Top 16 make it, and the Everett boys ended up 18^th with a 7-1 record. But at least for many of the team’s seniors, they were able to get some satisfaction as all-star participants in these games.

In the Agganis game, the Tide players were split up between the two squads. Jeremiah Jeanlouis and Jayden Prophete were on the North team, while Matt LaMonica, Adoni Santos, Dom Papa, Carlos Cornejo, Shane MacKenzie and Jason Stark suited up for the South.

Christian Zamor played on the winning North team in the Shriners game, and he was joined there by his Everett teammates Prophete and MacKenzie.

“It’s great to see the guys get one last opportunity to play together, especially considering the fact how large our senior class was last fall with 25-plus seniors on the roster,” said Flores. “I was excited to see them representing us in these games, because it’s really a big deal to play in them.”

These Tide players, for the most part, will be playing college football in the fall. But for three of them – MacKenzie, LaMonica and Papa – they will remain teammates after accepting offers to play for AIC (American International College) in Springfield this fall.

“This is a very unique situation, because it’s not that often a college gets two, let alone three from the same high school in the same year. They made the decision to go there at different times, but in the end, it was the right fit for all three of them,” said Flores. “I’m excited to see them play and grow together over the next couple of years at AIC.”

According to Flores, the Yellow Jackets play in the Northeast-10 Conference, and it’s a league that has been growing competitively each year.