Lynnfield puts Cathedral away by halftime

LYNNFIELD – Despite horrible weather conditions which led to a wet and soggy field, the Lynnfield football squad improved its record to 3-1 with a 34-8 over Cathedral Saturday at Lynnfield Middle School on Saturday afternoon.The Pioneers, who did all their scoring in the first half, raced downfield after receiving the opening kickoff. Quarterback Gino Cohee (7-83) gained a key first down on a third-and-four from the Lynnfield 26 with a five-yarder. Three plays later, he scampered past the Panthers defense and down the far sidelines from the Pioneers, 40 for the game’s first points.Cathedral (0-4) was only able to pick up one first down on its initial possession, and was forced to punt. The Pioneers began their ensuing drive at the Panthers’ 45 and gained 13 yards on a keeper by quarterback Chris Grassi. After a fumble and a stop on second down which pushed the team back to the 40, Grassi found teammate Tyler Surette, who made a tremendous over-the-shoulder catch at the 7 and then went the distance to improve the lead to 14-0.”They’ve gotten snaps in every game,” said Pioneers coach Neal Weidman of his two-headed quarterbacking hydra of Cohee and Grassi. “They’re both very athletic.”Lynnfield took advantage of another stalled Panthers’ drive, with linebacker George Hennessey sacking quarterback Antonio Thomas for a five-yard loss back to the Cathedral 23. The Pioneers set up at the Cathedral 43, with the possession culminating in a 26-yard score from Cohee to receiver Nicholas Roberts on the second play of the second quarter.Lynnfield’s special teams also shone, as a partially blocked punt gave the team solid field position at Cathedral’s 40 on the Panthers’ following possession. Grassi ended the three-play drive with a 26-yard run for a 28-0 margin.The Pioneers scored just before the end of the half, with Cohee finding Hennessey for a 15-yard touchdown.”It was a good first half for our starters, and we were able to get plenty of guys in,” Weidman stated.Both teams battled through a scoreless third quarter, before Thomas led the Panthers downfield in a 10-play, 54-yard drive. The key play came when halfback Widemarkens Michel gained the necessary yardage on a fourth-and-four from Lynnfield’s 33. Halfback David Cinelli Jr. added a 12-yard burst to the eight, and teammate Saquan Simmons (8-40) put the Panthers on the board with a five-yard score. Thomas added the two-point conversion.”We’re a very, very young team, with plenty of freshmen and sophomores, ” said Panthers’ coach Mike Pittman.