By Andy Dunn
Staff Writer
WA Football slid to 0-4 with an embarrassing loss to Waltham by a final score of 34-0 at Alumni Stadium.
On the night of the Spirit Week Kickoff Tailgate Event, the bleachers were packed to near capacity and the crowd was vivacious as the football team broke through a “Beat Waltham” banner to arrive on the field.
It was virtually all negative from there for WA. Waltham received the ball to start the game and efficiently drove down the field to the one-yard line with two big breakaway runs.
The running game was all Waltham essentially needed to beat WA, as they ran the ball effectively for the entirety of the game. Waltham halfback Kens Morantus led the charge for the Hawks and single-handedly dominated the first half.
After piling on a second rushing TD in Waltham’s first two drives after a Westford punt, Morantus broke off an 83-yard sprint to make it 20-0 with 3:43 left in the first quarter.
The Ghosts couldn’t escape Morantus’ wrath when the Ghosts took the field on offense as Morantus played outside linebacker as well throughout the game. Shutting down senior running back Ben Rodman and keeping intense pressure on senior quaterback Luke Moran the entire first half led to an anemic offense for WA.
To close out the half, Waltham added an additional rushing score, making the score 27-0 at halftime.
Waltham pulled back in the second half by limiting Morantus’ playing time and putting in a range of back-ups. As the offense continued to stall for WA, the lone second half score came by Waltham through, fittingly, another long run.
The silver lining for the faithful fans that stayed to the end was when coach Adam Gagne decided to throw in some back-ups, perhaps to see what other weapons WA may have in store for the future years.
Notably, junior quaterback James Antonelli came in during the fourth quarter and played a handful of snaps. Though nothing changed significantly, and Moran is still strongly expected to remain the starting QB, it was interesting to see the potential future starter for next year’s Grey Ghosts.
For the future-minded football watchers, it is also worth keeping an eye on the development of wide receiver/defensive back Brett Fitzgerald and wide receiver/cornerback Tom Jacobson, both currently juniors.
Before the season started, coach Gagne said the Ghosts have a “great schedule ahead” and that “there are no easy weeks.” That has certainly proven to be true as WA has fallen to 0-4 while playing some of the best regional opponents the past weeks in Waltham, Acton-Boxborough, and Lowell.
Gagne’s squad will look to rebound and put this disappointing start behind them when Newton South comes to Alumni Stadium next Friday, October 11 at 7:00 PM.
