By Cary Shuman
Senior running back Mario Ramirez rushed for 101 yards and three touchdowns in the Revere High School football team’s 43-14 victory over Medford last Thursday at Hormel Stadium.
Ramirez consistently found the terrain opened by the Revere offensive line against the Mustangs. Fittingly, Ramirez scored the final TD of the game on a 32-yard run.
“I felt as a team we kept the pressure on the Medford defense with our rushing attack, and Mario had a very strong performance,” said Revere head coach Lou Cicatelli.
Medford took an early 8-7 lead, but quarterback Jose Fuentes piloted a 60-yarrd drive, culminating with his own 8-yard run for a touchdown. Sophomore Reda Atoui rushed for the two-point conversion to give the Patriots a 15-8 lead at halftime.
Atoui, who finished with 100 yards rushing, struck for a 41-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter. Ramirez added his second touchdown of the night before Charles Dobre scored on a 24-yard run to build the Pats’ lead to 36-14.
Cicatelli lauded Fuentes for his field generalship of the Revere offense and his placekicking of five PATs.
Sophomore safety Filipe Demelo was a key contributor to Revere’s defensive effort, “moving up from his position in the secondary to provide run support,” noted Cicatelli. Bryan Fuentes was a leader on both sides of the football with several tackles and big pass receptions.
Cicatelli was pleased with how his how team responded after non-league losses to Quincy and Beverly.
“It was good to get that first win and build our confidence,” said Cicatelli.
Medford High head coach John Curley credited Revere’s run-oriented strategy as a key to its victory. “Hats off to Revere, they put a great scheme together,” Curley told sports correspondent Christopher Hurley of the Gotta Know Medford news site. “They were here for four quarters ready to play football. Sometimes that’s the way it goes. If you don’t show up, things won’t happen your way. That’s kind of what happened to us tonight.”
Revere (1-2) has a tough test on the road Friday night against high-powered Lynn English (1-2), who defeated Peabody, 54-32, for its first victory last Friday.
(Information from the Gotta Know Medford news publication was used in the compilation of this story).
