Gloucester, Swampscott set to renew rivalry

They are arguably the two premier programs in the Northeastern Conference and for a while in the offseason were set to become rivals in the NEC South. But with Gloucester keeping its spot in the NEC North, their annual game with Swampscott stays as a non-league match.On Saturday (12) at Blocksidge Field, the two playoff representatives from the NEC a season ago will meet in what is arguably the prime matchup of the first weekend of the high school season.”It’s a good challenge for us right off the bat,” Swampscott coach Steve Dembowski said. “Gloucester has a great program. Coach (Paul) Ingram does a great job and the kids always play hard.”The two teams are familiar with playing dramatic contests with the outcome not being resolved until the final moments. Last season, an aggressive, blitzing defense held the Big Blue in check for most of the first half. But a touchdown drive in the final moments of the half got Swampscott going and the Big Blue escaped with a win.This year both teams have to replace a ton of talent on offense and defense, making this opener very interesting.”We’ve got a lot of kids who played some last year and they are ready to step in and play,” Gloucester coach Paul Ingram said. “And they’ve got a lot of kids back on offense and defense so it should be a good way to open the season.”Both teams have to replace much of their offensive firepower as Matt Barbuzzi and Brett Cahill step into the fire that is the quarterback positions for the Big Blue and Fishermen respectively.Barbuzzi, a senior, was Chris Cameron’s back up last season and is very familiar with the Swampscott system.”Matt has had an awesome summer and preseason,” Dembowski said. “And I think he is going to have an awesome year. He’s paid his dues and he won’t be a weakness for us.”Kyle Shonio will flank Barbuzzi in the back field as Swampscott looks to break in a new core of receivers against one of the more challenging defenses in the NEC.”Our new receivers have done a nice job so far. They’ve taken a big step in the right direction,” Dembowski said.Cahill also was a back up last year, playing the role of understudy to Ricky Gallant for the Fishermen. The senior was the starting catcher on Gloucester’s Division 1 North winning baseball team and possesses a rifle arm, something Ingram knows could be beneficial to his Wing-T offense.”I said last year that if Rick went down, that we wouldn’t miss a beat with Brett,” Ingram said. “He throws a nice ball and we have a bunch of players at the skill positions that can catch very well.”The Fishermen, who reached the Division 2A Super Bowl last year, will rely on the running of Connor Ressel, Gilbert Brown and Jordan Shairs to help get Cahill’s feet wet in his new role.”Having Gilbert and Connor back really is huge. And Jordan has really improved,” Ingram said.Those weapons have the attention of Dembowski.”Our defense has to bear down and make some stops. That’s the big thing,” Dembowski said. “And on offense, we have the opportunity to make some big plays because of how they blitz. We need to take care of the ball.”Blue Hills at St. Mary’sAt Manning Field (7), the Spartans begin year two of the Matt Durgin era with a non-league match against a club that is a perrenial contender for the postseason.St. Mary’s went 5-6 a season ago and returns a plethora of talent on offense, led by sophomore running back Nick Day, who went for 10 touchdowns a year ago. The Spartans also have non-league games with Matignon, Madison Park and Martha’s Vineyard before beginning their Catholic Central League/Large schedule.Tech at DorchesterAt Dorchester (10:30), the Tigers look to build off a 4-7 season that was capped with a Thanksgiving Eve win over St. Mary’s. Tech will look to seniors Ryan Murphy and Steven Caisse to help lead the offense while Murphy will anchor a defense that played well at the end of last season.Matignon at LynnfieldAt Lynnfield Middle School (10), the Pioneers look to open their season like they did