Lynnfield succumbs to Danvers in shootout

DANVERS – In a streaky game devoid of defense, Danvers held off Lynnfield Thursday night in CAL/NEC crossover action at Dr. Deering Stadium, 42-35. The teams combined for 857 yards of total offense.The Falcons (3-2) salted away their second straight win when they recovered an onside kick with 1:05 to play and ran out the clock. The Pioneers slipped to 2-3.Danvers’ production came largely on the ground from senior Nick Valles (17 carries, 158 yards, two TDs), senior Jake Palazola (14 carries, 149 yards, two TDs) and sophomore Nick Valles (10 carries, 70 yards). Senior quarterback Paul Nicolo (8-of-13, 104 yards, two TDs) augmented the attack with scoring strikes of 17 yards to Alex Valles and 12 yards to Jake Cawlina (5 receptions, 58 yards).Junior quarterback Mike Karavetsos continued to drive the Pioneers, rushing for 105 yards and a score and completing12-of-18 passes for 226 yards and second-half TDs of 56 yards to Steve Yobaccio and 16 yards to Nicola Varano. Sophomore Kyle McGah added 74 yards and two scores on 13 carries.”We really hurt ourselves at times. Physically we were ready to play but we were mentally unfocused. We got that focus back in the fourth quarter. I thought Jake Palazola had a phenomenal game and it was good to see Scott Hovey (ankle, shoulder) back out there from injury and flying around on defense,” said Falcons’ coach Sean Rogers.Danvers raced out to a 14-0 lead as Nick Valles (10-yard run) and Alex Valles (17-yard pass) scored on the Falcons’ first two possessions and Anthony Garron drilled the first two of his six successful PATs. The Pioneers drew even when McGah’s three-yard plunge capped a 75-yard drive. The PAT failed and Danvers maintained a 14-6 halftime lead.Fireworks erupted after intermission. Karavetsos raced 52 yards on the second play of the second half and tacked on the two-point try to make it 14-14. With 5:39 left in the period, he lofted a 56-yard scoring strike to a wide open Yobaccio. Alex Roper’s PAT gave the Pioneers a 21-14 lead, completing a string of 21 unanswered points.Danvers tied it at 21-all on Nicolo’s 12-yard strike to Cawlina with 2:01 left in the third period; moved ahead on Nick Valles’s five-yard run in the first minute of the fourth quarter; and seemingly locked it up on Palazola’s eight-yard burst with 3:42 to play.The Pioneers refused to yield, sandwiching Karavetsos’s 16-yard scoring pass to Varano and McGah’s one-yard run around Palazola’s 60-yard sprint to account for the final.”We didn’t fold our tents. We played hard and gave ourselves a chance all the way to the end. Mike (Karavetsos) played well – it’s only his fifth career start and he’s improving week to week,” said Lynnfield coach Neal Weidman.