Xaverian gets revenge on Brockton
Berluti does it all in rout of Boxers
BROCKTON — The last time the Brockton and Xaverian football teams faced off, the visiting Boxers won in a performance that seared into the collective memory of their rival.
Saturday afternoon at Marciano Stadium, Xaverian returned the favor in a manner Brockton would rather forget, a 42-7 rout that ended with a running clock.
“It absolutely felt good to get revenge on them. It really did,” Xaverian quarterback Michael Berluti said. “That was on our minds all week this week. We definitely wanted to come into their house and let them know who we were this year.”
It was about as complete a victory as the Hawks (3-0) could have hoped for. Berluti was surgical, completing 19 of 24 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for another score, throwing a two-point conversion and kicking three other PATs. The offensive line of seniors Noah Eldridge and Luke Ferguson, junior Jack Funke, and sophomores Coly Canty and Jon
Mould was terrific on blitz pickup, and the Hawks tackled well on defense and didn’t allow many big plays.
“We controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball,” Xaverian coach Al Fornaro said. “Offensively, I don’t know how many yards, I don’t get caught up in that, but I know we took a lot of time marching up and down the field, and that’s a good thing.”
The first such march came on the opening drive, as Berluti capped a 10-play, 73-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run. He then helped push the lead to 15-0 with a 21-yard scoring toss to tight end Noah Canty.
After Michael Oates took an option pitch and ran in for a 6-yard touchdown to help put the Hawks up 22-0, Brockton finally found some rhythm on offense. Buoyed by a roughing the kicker penalty that extended the drive, the Boxers (2-1) got on the scoreboard with a 3-yard touchdown run from Jamal Jones-Reyes.
But Brockton’s momentum was short-lived. Berluti avoided the rush and hit Carlo Crocetti (seven receptions for 149 yards) for a 27yard score, and the Hawks went into the half with a 28-7 lead.
“Michael has really come into his own,” Fornaro said of the three-year starter. “He’s a master of our offense.”
Behind three completions to Henry Fleckner (seven receptions for 103 yards), the Hawks drove down and scored again in the third quarter on a 2-yard Joe Kelcourse run. Thomas Garland (80 yards rushing) added the exclamation point with a 46yard touchdown run.
“We knew they were going to be very good,” Brockton coach Peter Colombo said. “(They were) even better than I thought, honestly. Physically, they had us outmatched.”