CM defeats Haverhill to start season 2-0

On a comfortable early fall night the CM Knights came out and dismantled the Haverhill Hillies from the opening kickoff.

Wasting no time, the Knights moved the ball ahead with a quick three minute drive that was capped off by an Aj Doyle touchdown run. The run gave the Knights a 7-0 lead, a lead they would never relinquish. Later in the quarter Aj connected with Armani Reeves for a 15 yard touchdown giving the Knights an early 14-0 advantage.

The Knights defense looked sharp as Haverhill struggled to pick up any positive yardage throughout the game. With 3:52 left in the first half Reeves returned an interception for a touchdown pushing the Knights to a 21-0 lead.

Aj wasn't done making his mark on the first half, with three seconds to go he hit Josh Charles in the end zone for a 39 yard pass putting the Knights up 28-0.

CM wasn't done scoring until Mike Techiera rushed for his first touchdown of the season establishing a 35-0 lead which would end up being the final score.

The Knights played with a lot of energy and passion on a night that featured a huge crowd, a Fox 25 television camera crew, and a Powerade truck handing out thunder clappers. When asked about his team's attitude the blur of speed otherwise known as Armani Reeves had this to say.

"We were really excited with Fox being there and we were really pumped and ready for the game. We played hard and really wanted to win. It was a big motivator for us."

Next week the Knights will take their show on the road as they make the long bus ride to Hartford, Vermont. Last season the Knights beat Hartford at home 42-12. Next week the Knights hope for a repeat performance.

Mike Slonina '11

CM wins on 73-yard bomb

On, Friday night, the Knights kicked off their 2010 football season against the Lynn Classical Rams with a thrilling 21-14 come from behind win.

Knight's quarterback AJ Doyle came out of the gates hot and opened up the defense for running back William Earl to operate. The junior running back followed up a 20 yard run with another 19 yard touchdown run filled with jukes and spin moves.

The Rams' offense consisted of a heavy diet of run plays. The reasoning for that became obvious when the first pass they threw was picked off by Donovan Henry.

One thing about the Rams' offense that seriously hurt the Knights was their ability to run long, time consuming drives. To end the second quarter they capped off a 6 minute drive with a pass to the sideline that turned into a 40 yard touchdown.

The Rams started the second half on their own 3 yard line and the Knights took advantage by forcing a safety and tying it up at 8.

Things kept getting better when junior Armani Reeves returned the punt on the safety to the 29 yard line. The offense didn't move much from here on for the Knights. Doyle ran for 10 yards early in the drive but after three consecutive failed runs the Knights were forced to kick a field goal.

Senior Tom Byrnes nailed the 17 yard field goal to give the Knights an 11-8 lead.

The Rams refused to go down quietly and connected on a 24 yard pass to get into the red zone to end the third quarter. The Knights fought hard to keep the Rams out of the end zone but eventually they got in on a two yard run to go up 14-11.

The Rams got greedy and tried an onside kick but it backfired horribly when it didn't go 10 yards, giving the Knights the ball on the Rams' 45 yard line.

The Knights' running game was slowed to a crawl in the second half and they faced a 4th & 2 situation, arguably with the game on the line. Doyle and Reeves came up big for the first time on a pass to the sideline for a first down to keep the drive alive. Later in the drive, after escaping a heavy pass rush AJ Doyle showed a pure will to win as he refused to go down for 10 yards, setting up another field goal from Byrnes with 4:23 left to play. As he usually does, Byrnes drilled the 23 yarder and tied it up at 14.

Senior captain John Gorman sacked the Rams' quarterback with 1:50 left as the Knights defense was trying to force overtime. They would end up doing one better as senior Dimitri Claude intercepted a pass intended to the sideline and gave the Knights the ball on their own 40 yard line with 1:01 left in the game.

With the ball and a chance to steal a win, Doyle escaped a rush and broke free for major yards before being thrown down far out of bounds, a dirty tackle that would cause a lot of pushing and shoving on the CM sideline. Despite that dirty play, a block in the back put the Knights back on their own 27 yard line with just 35 seconds left.

After a couple failed plays, it happened.

Doyle dropped back and connected with Armani Reeves for a 73 yard touchdown that sent the crowd into a frenzy. After crossing the goal line Armani immediately looked for the ref and humbly handed him the ball. Then he and the rest of teammates went crazy. I've been to a lot of high school football games and I've never seen a game end like that.

Another interception from Donovan Henry sealed the game and the Knights escaped with a jaw dropping 21-14 victory.

The Knights won without both Cam Williams and Fabrice Rateau, two integral parts of the team.

AJ Doyle showed poise that he didn't have last season and he seemed much more confident in the pocket. I asked him about the game winning touchdown pass and what was going through his mind as the play developed.

"I didn't see the pass get completed because I got hit, but then I heard the crowd go nuts and knew the game was over. Nobody can catch him (Armani Reeves)."

After Friday night I think you'd be hard-pressed to find someone who would disagree.

Completing that play meant more than football to Reeves. He recalled saying to himself, "I got to do this for my grandfather, so please let me catch this," he said. (Reeves' grandfather had passed away recently.)

Next week, the Knights will play Haverhill in the Fox 25 game of the week. Although their win against Lynn Classical was as exhilarating as a win can get, I'm sure the Knights would rather not do it the hard way next time.

Mike Slonina '11

BC High 28, CM 17

In the annual CM VS BC High Thanksgiving day game you could feel the tension in the air. CM came out emotionally charged and took a small lead into halftime, BC came out in the second half with no intention on conceding and that was evident when they outscored CM 14-0 in the second half to keep the Pumpkin Trophy in their possession.

Armani Reeves came out early and made a statement on a bone-crushing hit to force a fumble, which he also recovered. On CM’s first possession quarterback AJ Doyle hooked up with Donald Bland on a play action pass for a 20-yard gain. The Knights would get on the board first as Keshaudus Spence broke a 28 yard touchdown run on a well executed draw play. On the next BC High possession Cam Williams recovered a fumble on the Eagles’ one-yard line, an AJ Doyle run put CM ahead 14-0. The Eagles finally joined the party halfway through the second quarter when a 5-yard touchdown run put them down 14-6 after a failed two-point conversion. A costly pass interference call gave CM the ball on the Eagles’ 29-yard line, CM couldn’t force their way into the end zone and were forced to settle for a field goal. It looked as if the Knights were going to be able to enjoy a big halftime lead until the Eagles connected on a long touchdown pass to keep themselves in striking distance of the Knights. A successful two point conversion made the score CM 17- BC 14 heading into the break.

The Eagles came out and sent a message on their first drive in the second half when they immediately took the lead on a long touchdown pass. BC pulled away on a 58 yard run from Preston Cooper who then punched in a short touchdown run to put the Eagles up 28-17, which would hold up as the final score. CM still didn’t quit, Spence willed his way for a first down with about six minutes left in the game. The game wasn’t completely out of reach until miscommunication between Doyle and his receiver resulted in an ugly interception with just 3:46 left. The biggest reason why the Eagles were able to totally shut down the Knights’ offense was their relentless pressure on AJ Doyle. Play after play the Eagles busted through the Knights’ offensive line and put Doyle on his back.

It has been a long season for the Knights who have been plagued by injuries since day one. Right now the only good news is that the Knights have a long list of talented underclassmen including one captain from this year who will be returning next year.


Mike Slonina '11

CM Falls Just Short of Monumental Upset, 30-28

On Sunday the Catholic Memorial Knights marched into Xaverian Brothers High School ready to give the number one ranked team in the state their first loss of the season. The Knights stayed in the game throughout but fell just short in the end losing 30-28.

Xaverian got on the board first with a one-yard touchdown run about halfway through the first quarter. On the next drive, once CM was finally forced to punt the kick was returned for a touchdown. The Knights, now down 14-0 knew that Xaverian's momentum needed to be stopped immediately or they were going to be looking at a blowout. Apparently Sophomore Armani Reeves knew this because he returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown. Joey McCarthy fumbled the snap on the extra point but he made up for it by running into the end zone, which put the Knights down only 14-8. After their returned kickoff the Knights defense stepped up with solid tackling as well as a fumble which was caused by Lorenzo Warren hitting the Xaverian quarterback from his blind side. The game score would stay at 14-8 heading into halftime.

In the second half no impact plays were made until Warren recovered a fumbled snap to give the Knights the ball in excellent field position with 6:09 left in the third quarter. Keshaudus Spence then broke free for a 25 yard touchdown run to put the Knights in position to take the lead, however a blocked punt kept the game tied at 14. The Hawks broke the tie on the first play of the fourth quarter with a touchdown run. Knights' quarterback AJ Doyle then threw a costly interception deep in CM territory which would have buried the Knights if not for excellent defense to force the Hawks to kick a field goal. Xaverian helped the Knights' cause when their kickoff went out of bounds, which gave the Knights the ball on their 40-yard line. The play of the game was a reverse to Joey McCarthy who, after looking to pass downfield, maneuvered his was for a 35-yard gain. The Hawks would once again hurt themselves with a costly pass interference penalty, which gave CM the ball on the 9-yard line. Lorenzo Warren kept CM in the game when he muscled his way for a touchdown to put CM within three, down 24-21. Much to the disappointment of the Knights' bench, the Hawks connected on a huge pass play to put themselves on the CM's 9-yard line and in excellent position to make it a two-possession game. Xaverian scored their final touchdown of the afternoon with 3:17 left, a blocked extra point made the score 30-21. The Knights marched all the way from the 8 yard line into the end zone but time was not on their side, Doyle finally hit McCarthy in the end zone with only :04 remaining.

With their performance in this game the Knights have nothing to hang their heads about, they gave the number one ranked team in the state the biggest scare they've seen this season. Still, that doesn't mean that it hurts any less. The Knights gave everything they had and if a few things went differently then who knows, maybe they pull it out.

CM's final game of the season is their annual Thanksgiving day game against BC High. Every year the Pumpkin Trophy is put on the line in this age old Catholic Conference rivalry. The Knights' final mission of the season is to bring the trophy back to Baker Street for the first time in four years.

Mike Slonina '11

Malden Catholic 28, CM 26

In their first home game since September 25th, the Knights faced off against the Malden Catholic Lancers in their first Catholic Conference game of the season.

The Knights second drive of the game was highlighted by a Lorenzo Warren 54 yard run, and a 37 yard pass from AJ Doyle to Cam Williams. CM would miss a field goal to end the drive after three runs which were unsuccessful. The very next play Cam Williams recovered an MC fumble to give the Knights the ball back in prime scoring position. Doyle hit receiver Joey McCarthy deep in the red zone on a fourth down to continue the drive.

The first quarter ended with the Knights on the 2 yard line, and Doyle would run it in himself to start the second quarter. MC's rushing attack was sensational, their first drive in the second quarter started at the 20 yard line and took them all the way through the end zone. Once CM got the ball back they took a lot of time off the clock before drilling a field goal with 1:04 seconds left in the first half. It looked as if CM was going to be able to head to the locker room with a lead before MC's Quinn McDonough returned the following kickoff for a touchdown to give the Lancers a 14-10 lead heading into the halftime.

The third quarter was rough for the Knights as their offense was completely stalled, it looked as if the communication between Doyle and his receivers was off. It didn't help the Knights that McDonough would return an interception for a touchdown to give his Lancers a 20-10 lead. Another interception with 0:49 left in the third enabled the Lancers to start the fourth in great position to put the game away. They would once again break into the end zone with 8:56 left in the game, after a successful two point conversion the Lancers held a comfortable 28-10 lead.

CM never stopped playing, and as a result, they would put themselves back in the game. Doyle hit running back Lorenzo Warren in the end zone with 6:09 left, after a converted two point conversion the score was 28-18. The CM defense came up with a stop and the offense took advantage of their opportunity. In two consecutive plays Doyle connected with Donald Bland for a 40 yard play, and Joey McCarthy on a 39 yard missile to put the ball on the seven yard line. Donovan Henry punched it into the end zone to make the score 24-28. The Knights' two-point conversion featured a fantastic run from Warren putting CM down two after being down by eighteen just seven minutes earlier. The defense once again came up big and stopped the Lancers with 0:52 left in the game.

CM would then go four and out and in the process drop their second straight game.

It is important to note that the Knights were ridden by injuries Friday night. In addition to the already injured Armani Reeves, wide receiver Cam Williams and defensive back Keshaudus Spence both left the game with shoulder injuries in the first half. In the second half seniors Mark Glynn and Richard Errico also suffered injuries which would keep them sidelined for the remainder of the game. Not having Spence in the middle definitely hurt the Knights dearly. The Lancers' running game would have been as dominant as it was if Spence was there to hit anything and everything wearing a white jersey.

One piece of good news concerning the Knights' injuries is that junior captain John Gorman debuted in his first game of the season. A back injury had kept Gorman off the field since the end of August.

This game puts CM in an undesirable position concerning the playoff picture. In a ten-game season, two losses is a lot. Every game from here on out is an absolute must win for the Knights. One more loss and CM's playoff hopes are dead. They have a tall task in front them, the next few games are all against good teams and each game is probably going to be a dogfight. Next week the Knights will host the St. John's Prep Eagles and try to keep their postseason dreams alive.

Mike Slonina '11

Bishop Guertin 52 - CM 13

Bishop Guertin started off the game on a convincing first drive which ended in a touchdown. They would not slow down from there.

In the first quarter CM introduced its new wildcat offense, which on its first trial produced a decent sized gain. After punting later that drive, Donald Bland recovered a fumble to give the Knights the ball back only down 10-0. After a good drive down to the 10 yard line, Tom Byrnes was clearly run into on his field goal attempt but there was no call made by the officials, much to the absolute astonishment of the CM faithful.

The second quarter was highlighted by Donovan Henry's kickoff return which he brought back for a touchdown. The Cardinals added to their lead with a 2 yard touchdown run to give themselves a 24-7 lead. CM manufactured a stop late in the first half and after a screen pass from AJ Doyle to Joey McCarthy CM tried a 57 yard field goal. Kicker Tom Byrnes missed the field goal by about 3 feet which is amazing to even get that close. Most high school kickers don't have the power to even entertain the thought of attempting such a long field goal.

The second half spelled doom for the Knights' previously undefeated season as the Cardinals pulled away scoring four more touchdowns. However Donovan Henry would once again spark the CM sidelines with another touchdown on a kickoff return as the Knights' last memorable play of the night. In this game the Knights never quit for one second. Despite terrible calls, cheap hits, and freezing conditions the Knights still fought back for all 48 minutes. Keshaudus Spence and Mark Glynn were both very vocal on the sidelines trying to keep their team in the game. On defense Spence and Donald Bland delivered big hits with regularity as they have done all season.

Games like this are games when you learn about your identity as a team. When facing a huge deficit, do you give up? Coach Campea must be pleased with his team's effort throughout the game. Tonight was a mixture of the Knights having a sub par game, and Bishop Guertin executing with great consistency.

I'm not someone who likes to point out the refs, but in this case I don't feel like I would be doing Coach Campea or the football team justice by ignoring it. In the first half there were dozens of unbelievably bad calls or no calls. The one that sticks out the most in my mind was a late hit on wide receiver Joey McCarthy. He jumped for a catch and was cleanly hit in the legs. But then, after the whistle a Cardinal safety came in and it was blatantly obvious that he was trying to injure McCarthy. There was no call. Beyond the affect that the refs had on the final score, they have to realize that they have a responsibility to keep the players safe. Often times there are stories in the news about football players being paralyzed, well the hit on McCarthy is exactly how that happens.

No, the refs did not decide the game. But they did change the entire complexion of the game with their antics in the first half.

Next week the Knights look to get their season back on track as they return home to face the Malden Catholic Lancers.

Mike Slonina '11

CM Guts Out Win in Longmeadow to Stay Undefeated

In a game with the Longmeadow Lancers, the CM Knights came away victorious for their fourth win of the season on a heart palpitating 35-33 win.

The first quarter was dominated by the Lancers as they scored two quick touchdowns to start the game, a Keshaudus Spence touchdown put CM behind 13-7 heading into the second quarter.

CM took the lead late in the second quarter on another

Keshaudus Spence touchdown. Ahead 14-13, the Knights came up with an enormous goal line stop with 5 seconds left in the first half.

In the third quarter, the Knights added to their lead when AJ Doyle hit Cam Williams with a bullet for a 55 yard touchdown. This put the knights ahead 21-13, it looked like the Knights were ready to pull away judging by the momentum on the Knights side and the defeated body language of the Lancers.

The fourth quarter was as eventful and tense as any fourth quarter in CM history. The Lancers scored early in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 21-19 after a failed two point conversion. CM turned the ball over with 10:29 left in the quarter which lead to another Longmeadow touchdown, once the Lancers completed a two point conversion they found themselves up 27- 21 with about six minutes remaining. It looked as if CM was in serious trouble, they were having severe difficulties running the ball at that point and it seemed as if the air had been let out of their balloon. The Knights showed tremendous grit and determination in the following minutes. Quarterback AJ Doyle ran for a first down on a big third and ten play. A few plays later Lorenzo Warren ran for a first down with 2:35 remaining on a third and one. This is where Warren took over, the next play Warren ran for a 22 yard touchdown and after an extra point from Tom Byrnes, CM re-claimed the lead at 28-27. On the third play of the Lancers next drive Warren made a diving interception to give the Knights the ball back. But his heroics wouldn't end there, Warren then broke a 47 yard touchdown run to put CM up 35-27. So the game is over right? Wrong. The Lancers produced a incredible desperation 49 yard touchdown to keep themselves in the game, down two with 18 seconds left. This is it, the two point conversion which would likely force an overtime. The Lancers decided to run a full back blast up the middle which was stuffed at the line of scrimmage to give CM their fourth win of the season.

This game was a gut check for CM, for the first time this season the Knights had their backs against the wall late in the fourth quarter. As a unit CM showed tremendous poise and put an end to what could have been a magical night in Longmeadow. The Longmeadow Lancers will definitely be hurting over this game for awhile, but they should definitely find solace in the fact that they earned the respect of everyone there. There was not an ounce of quit in the Lancers and they pushed CM to the limit. Now 4-0, CM looks to continue their charge for the playoffs as they head to Nashua, New Hampshire, to go toe to toe with the Bishop Guertin Cardinals next friday night.

Mike Slonina '11

Knights Surge to 3-0, on 42-12 Victory over Hartford Hurricanes

The Hartford Hurricanes made the long trip down from Vermont to Baker street, it must have been a long bus ride back.

The first drive of the first quarter looked like the Knights were in for a tight game, but a red zone stop quickly turned the tides. AJ Doyle connected with Joey McCarthy on a 5o yard completion to set up a Keshaudus Spence touchdown run. In the second quarter Kashaudus would make his presence felt with a fumble recovery and yet another touchdown run to put the Knights in front 14-0 heading into halftime. The second half spelled doom for Hartford as an offensive eruption was waiting for them. William Earl started off the scoring with a 40 yard touchdown run. AJ Doyle had a touchdown run and would later connect with Chinedu Chukwu on a screen pass for a touchdown at the end of the third quarter. Nolan Powers was the highlight of the fourth quarter with a touchdown run, and would later break a 47 yard run which would be the Knights last big play of the night.

Heading into the bye week the Knights are in great position to make a deep postseason run. Hartford was the Vermont state champion and the Knights passed their test with flying colors. There is a lot of time left and it's far too early to start making predictions but if the Knights keep playing with this tenacity and hunger it is possible that CM will be making an addition to the football banner on the wall.

Mike Slonina '11

CM 27- Haverhill 6

In their home opener the Knight's methodically dismantled the Haverhill Hillies.

1st Quarter

AJ Doyle connected with Joey McCarthy on a screen pass, after reversing the field McCarthy worked his way to a 39 yard gain. AJ and Joey would hookup again later that drive on a beautifully lead 25 yard touchdown pass.

2nd Quarter

In the second quarter, the Hillies got in the end zone for their first and only TD. Their questionable two point conversion attempt was stuffed. The rest of the second half was highlighted by the defensive lineman Keshaudas Spence. He delivered crushing hits, one after another (including 2 sacks in a row) until the first half came to a close.

3rd Quarter

On the first play of the second half Armani Reeves brought back a kickoff for a 90 yard touchdown. This was just the beginning of the disaster that was about to ensue over Haverhill. Later in the third quarter AJ Doyle ran in a 16 yard quarterback keeper for a touchdown.

4th Quarter

After a long drive by Haverhill the Knights took any hope the Hillies had left when Donald Bland recovered a fumble in the end zone. Another screen pass, this time to Lorenzo Warren, set up another scoring threat for the Knights. Once again AJ Doyle hit Joey McCarthy for the Knights final touchdown. The Hillies made one final attempt to stay alive but John Filippides put an end to that when he recorded his first interception of the season.

Between the Knights first two games their defense has let up a total of six points. And the six was scored on possibly the luckiest catch ever. It's far too early to start talking about the state tournament but if the defense can keep this up with any kind of consistency then CM has as good of a shot at the title as anyone. Next week the Knights will try to keep their winning streak alive as they take on Hartford at home.

Mike Slonina '11

CM 17, Lynn Classical 0

It was a rainy and somber night at Manning field in Lynn, but still, CM came out of the fray victorious.

The first half was highlighted by (Senior) Lorenzo Warren's first rushing touchdown of the day. The action picked up in the second half where the Knights pulled away. After a fumble on a punt return by Lynn Classical, Lorenzo Warren punched in his second and final TD on a five yard draw play. The CM defense set the tone in the second half as Lynn had major difficulties moving the ball. Sophomore Armani Reeves delivered several big hits including a timely tackle on a fourth down to turn the ball over. After yet another turnover on downs by Lynn, Sophomore quarterback A.J. Doyle hit (Senior) Joey McCarthy on a slant to set up a scoring opportunity. After three failed attempts to get in the endzone Junior Tom Byrnes cemented the win with a field goal to put CM ahead 17-0. The exclamation point was put on when Lynn Classical's quarterback was served a bone rattling hit to force a fumble in the closing seconds.

The rainy terrain caused noticeable difficulties for both sides as fumbles were almost as common as completed passes. Fortunately for the Knights, a vast majority of these fumbles came from Lynn. In any football game the team that wins the turnover battle almost always wins the game.

They were dropping like flies for CM, many players had to come out due to leg cramps. Senior Mark Glynn came out of the game with what appeared to be a serious left knee injury, however he showed tremendous heart by returning and making his presence felt on a big hit in the backfield.

CM now turns their attention to Friday night where they will look to create a long winning streak as they aim to dismantle the visiting Haverhill in front of their home crowd.

Mike Slonina '11