By Greg Settos ’19
The Wreckers football team opened up their season at Bridgeport Central on Friday night, Sept. 8, and left with a crushing win of 35-6.
The Wreckers are now under new head coach Phil Treglia as he replaces Marce Petroccio, who was with Staples for 25 years. Treglia coaches a rejuvenated Staples team that showed few weaknesses in their opening debut.
Staples jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, with a dominating score of 21-0. However, the key offensive threat was quarterback Jake Thaw ’20.
“The offense looked great but we’ve got a lot to improve on,” Thaw said. “The [offensive line] was fantastic, we all did our jobs. It’s never easy to go on the road and put up points, so we can definitely be proud of this performance.”
Staples was hot from the first possession, when Thaw threw a 51-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Kevin Rabacs ’19, giving the Wreckers a 7-0 lead to start the game. Tim Luciano ’19, the running back for Staples, followed that with two rushing touchdowns, tying his career high from last year.
The Wreckers ended the half with an eight-play, 66-yard touchdown drive as Thaw found just enough room to scramble into the endzone. He finished the night with one passing and one rushing touchdown as quarterback Jack Saltus ’19 took over the remainder of the duties in the second half.
Staples was not only dominant on the offensive side but the defensive side as well. After being down 21-0 to start the second quarter, the Hilltoppers had a massive kick return that brought them to the 28-yard line. They couldn’t muster much else, as a few plays later Captain Blake Runkle ’19 recovered a fumble that would eventually lead to a Wrecker touchdown.
“The defense played great last night,” Runkle said. We only let up one first down with the starters in and did not allow any game-changing plays. Everyone was really excited to get out there and hit someone.”
With the Wreckers coming off a disappointing 6-4 season last year, returning only seven of its starters, they look to bounce back and rebuild under their new coach.
“I am really proud with the way our team played,” Captain Matt Almansi ’19 said. “We played with a lot of heart and intensity. I feel like we learned a lot from the seniors last year and we are going to continue to improve and get ready for our home opener against Wilton.”
The next game, which is the Staples home opener, is slated for Friday, Sept. 14.