Item Football 2009: It’s onward and upward for St. Mary’s this season

The St. Mary’s High football team will be looking to improve on last year’s 5-6 mark under second-year coach Matt Durgin.”We made a lot of progress a year ago, but we have to continue that,” Durgin said.The Spartans has a couple of holes that need filling including at quarterback, a position held by John LaMothe last year. Senior Cam Mulvey, who played some defense for varsity last year while honing his quarterbacking skills on the junior varsity team, is ready to step in.”He’s getting better each day,” Durgin said. “He’s getting more comfortable.”Mulvey is a captain along with Tim Ray, David Hicks and C.J. Hudson.Durgin also has a couple of other quarterbacks in the wings in sophomores Jonathan Capano and Alex Fiste.Durgin said he has a lot of battles going on at different positions. On offense, junior Josh Stueve and sophomore Jeff Peras are vying for a job at tight end. Junior Richie Norian-Far-Eddows is at right tackle and. Hudson returns at right guard. Ian Grocki is back at center, a position he settled into midway through the season last year. Senior Nick Francis is at left guard and returning starter and junior D. J. Webster is at left tackle.Pat Hogan, a junior, and Andrew Olson, a sophomore, should both see time at left tight end.Durgin is encouraged by what he’s seeing in the backfield.”One place where we have depth is at running back,” Durgin said. “I think we’ve gotten a lot stronger, more physical and we’re quicker.”Ray returns as a running back and receiver as does sophomore Nick Day, who as a freshman scored 11 touchdowns. Todd Collier, also a sophomore, came on strong towards the end of the year and junior Ryan Barrows saw considerable time on varsity last year as well. The Spartans also have a new face in the backfield in junior Phil Larkin, who as at English last year. Hicks, who started at defensive back, also saw time at running back last year.Fullback Jordan Harvey graduated, but there are a couple of candidates for the job including senior Corey Bartlett and junior Steve Carroll. Sophomore Xavier Gonzales, a transfer from English, and sophomore Sam Scranton are also looking good out there.Senior Matt McDermott plays defensive back, but he sees time at wide receiver and running back. Junior Rosanto Campbell, who is new this year, is also a wide receiver.On the other side of the ball, senior Michael Kulch and junior Andre Borgella are battling it out at nose guard while Olson, Guychard Sampson, Nick Francis, Grocki and Melvin St. Paulin also lookfor a home of the defensive line.The mix at linebacker includes Ray, Hicks, Bartlett, Scranton, Jack Simpson, Webster, Steve Carroll, Gonzalez and Josh Stueve. Larkin, Barrows, Day, McDermott, Michael Calder, Collier, Dan Murkison and Kevin Romulous.There won’t be a repeat of last year’s St. Mary’s vs. Classical match-up this year, but the Spartans do have an ambitious schedule. They open against Blue Hills on Saturday, Sept. 12, at Manning Field, followed by Matignon, Madison park High, Martha’s Vineyard,.Durgin’s staff includes plenty of familiar faces. Derek Dana is the defensive coordinator, Harold Watler will help out with the backs; Brian Mulvey will work with the defensive backs; Tom Donahue will help out with the line and special teams and James Ridley and Jim Kenniston will coach the freshmen.