SWAMPSCOTT — It’s no secret that Marblehead carries a high-powered offense capable of moving the chains in a hurry. But Swampscott’s defense isn’t intimidated by the Magicians.
“(Marblehead) basically does the same thing every year,” Swampscott head coach Bob Serino said. “We just have to defend it. Our defense has been stellar all year. I’ll put our defense up against any offense in the league right now. Our defensive coaches do a great job.”
And the Big Blue have the numbers to back up Serino’s praise. Swampscott allowed 27 points in three Division 5 North tournament games en route to the state semifinal (20-12 win over Holliston last Friday).
In four October games, the Big Blue surrendered just 13 points with two shutouts in the process.
Serino said it’s been a total team effort that has carried the Big Blue defensively. Angelo Ciciotti, Tyler Marshall and Anton Vasquez lead the defensive line. Linebackers Nick Reiser and Dylan January hold down the fort in the middle. Zack Palmer, Arturo Vasquez and Andrew Augustin pace the secondary.
“All those guys chip in and play,” Serino said. “We gang tackle. They’ve built one of the best defenses since 2007.”
Offensively, quarterback Graham Inzana guides the charge. Inzana, a 2018 Item All-Star, has plenty of receivers in the passing game. And it doesn’t hurt that sophomore tight end Cameron O’Brien’s starting to come into his own.
“Cam’s a great athlete,” offensive coordinator Chris Cameron said. “He came into the season as the backup quarterback. He stepped up and did what he had to do for the team. He’s a great blocker and a great pass-catcher too.”
Hoping to be as balanced an offense as possible, Swampscott worked on developing its ground game over the summer.
“The last couple of years we’ve been mostly four-wide,” Cameron said. “We struggled with the run game a little bit. We started to put in a few different looks with the tight end and the hybrid. I think that helped pick up the run game a lot.”
The early efforts have paid dividends with January and Xaviah Bascon leading that department.
“Dylan came into the season and lost about 20 pounds,” running backs coach Kyle Shonio said. “I saw him in pretty much the best shape I’ve ever seen a football player, almost. He’s one of the smartest players on the field. He knows his assignments. He runs hard and low.
“Xaviah’s a sophomore. We all knew he’d be something special when he came in last year. He has great hands out of the backfield. Both are very coachable, great kids.”
The Big Blue won’t do anything different in their approach.
“The bottom line is it’s Thanksgiving and it’s Marblehead but every game we competed in, games against Beverly, Danvers, English, we treated them all the same,” Serino said. “We came out flying and with adrenaline. It’s 10 in the morning, the crowd’s packed. It’s a great atmosphere. But we treat them all the same.”
But Swampscott would love nothing more than to give its seniors a win in their final Thanksgiving game.
“The seniors are fired up,” Serino said. “This senior class has been there for four years and it’s their fourth year facing them. I’d love for them to walk away from Piper Field with a victory. These guys have worked hard since the summer. They deserve it.”
Kickoff’s scheduled for 10 a.m. at Piper Field Thursday.
