Spartan Football Continues Shutout Streak

A 56-0 victory over South Hadley High School can be accredited to offensive and defensive domination by the Spartans in Friday night’s game.

To give credit where it is due, junior running back Dominick Gamelli set the tone for the Spartans’ commanding win, accounting for the first four of the game’s eight touchdowns.

The other half of the team’s touchdowns came from Preston Longo, Dominic Serafino, and two from Dan Magiera. Kicker Braden Gotta was successful for all extra points attempted, tallying an extra 8 points to the scoreboard.

Six of the eight touchdowns came in the first half, allowing the Spartans some breathing room and the Tigers a deflated spirit as the teams headed into the second half with a 42-0 score.

On the other hand, newly appointed 2022 Super 7 defensive lineman Nick Ferguson kept the rest of the team’s defense locked down for the entirety of the game. 

The Spartans’ shutdown defense has not gone unnoticed by junior quarterback Shane Becker.

“If it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t be close to putting up those points,” Becker said. “It helps us so much because it sets up our offense in perfect positions to score.”

What Becker himself was able to do with those opportunities was complete 72 passing yards, overshadowed in the long run by the aforementioned Gamelli’s 4 touchdowns for 118 yards.

Senior wide receiver Conner Robidoux’s performance in this blowout consisted of one carry and two passing completions, following his three touchdowns in last week’s matchup against Taconic.

For Week 3’s game against the No. 15 Chicopee Comp, Robidoux’s focus is on keeping up the camaraderie of the offensive line.

“We need to keep staying behind our running back,” Robidoux said. “As long as we stay together and keep playing the way we did tonight, I think we’ll be fine.”

Looking farther into the Spartans’ future for the rest of the 2022 season, the senior Robidoux has goals.

“Hopefully we can rack up as many wins as possible. The goal is to stay together, host a home playoff game, and see how far our season takes us.”

A goal for this season that has clearly already been accomplished is coming together as a team. Achieving this goal has already been a proven strength for the Spartans, and one they wish to continue with moving forward.

“We’re a big family now and it makes a big difference when the skill set is better or worse,” Becker said. “It just helps us win games.”

Building a close relationship with their team has been easy for the players under the leadership of both Robidoux and Becker.

“Last year I stepped into a leadership role a little bit so it’s not as foreign to me, but seeing guys around me step up, like this guy right here,” Robidoux said, patting Becker on the back, “has been a big thing. It helps us stay together as a family and have games like the one we just had.”

To end the game with a joyful moment, junior defensive tackle Eric Cole, who had been keeping East Longmeadow’s student section hyped up the whole game, jumped into the action himself on the Spartans’ punt return after scoring their final touchdown of the game.