Ragusa runs wild as CHS football trounces Sharon

Senior captain Alec Ragusa led the Bulldogs’ rushing attack with 153 yards and 2 TDs. (Mike Barucci photo)

During the last few seasons, playing Sharon, especially on the road, has been what CHS head football coach Dave Bohane described as a “house of horrors.”

Eagle head coach Dave Morse devised a defense which at times surprised and shut down the Canton offense, most notably two years ago when the Bulldogs were driving toward a Davenport title and a run at the playoffs.

On Saturday, there were no such surprises for the Bulldogs as Canton improved its record to 2-4 with a dominating 31-2 win at Sharon.

CHS took control of the game gradually in the first quarter and poured it on, grabbing a 31-2 lead by the start of the fourth quarter, which allowed Bohane to send in his second units.

Canton amassed 400 yards of total offense in the win, including a whopping 330 yards on the ground and 71 yards through the air. It was senior Alec Ragusa’s day as he pounded the Eagle defense for 153 yards and two touchdowns, often carrying defenders another five to 10 yards after being hit.

“In my mind he is the Hockomock League Player of the Year,” Bohane said of Ragusa. “Too bad we had so many tough, close losses. Today I had the feeling Alec had it in his mind he was not going to be stopped. He is having a phenomenal season.”

Ragusa has also had help from some of his younger teammates, including sophomores Kyle Fitzgerald and Gersom Rivera, who combined for 86 yards on the ground against the Eagles. Rivera scored on a 15-yard run and had another rushing touchdown called back on a Canton penalty.

Even at the end of the game, Canton reserves Ryan Colby, Max Gallagher, and Alain Jean kept running hard, rushing for 69 yards in the fourth quarter and almost leading the Bulldogs to another score.

Sophomore quarterback Johnny Hagan continues to improve and made several big plays in the game, running for 15 yards and completing eight passes to receivers Rivera, Fitzgerald, Brendan Albert, Jace Emma, and Ragusa.

The only negative in the game were the nine penalties Canton was called for, including four holding calls, two illegal blocks in the back, a false start, an offside, and an illegal shift. Bohane said some of these miscues have been the result of inexperience, but added that “cleaning up these penalties will be stressed again in practice.”

Sharon’s only points came on a fumbled snap during an extra-point attempt after a Canton touchdown early in the second quarter. Sharon’s Drew Naisuler scooped up the ball and rumbled for 90 yards for two points.

The Canton defense was superb throughout the game with Brendan Albert leading the way with four tackles and James Murphy and Robbie Gallery each finishing with three. The Canton secondary also played well with interceptions by Tony Harris and Lucas Ragusa and pass breakups by Fitzgerald and Cordel Smith. Harris and Chris Benjamin also tipped passes and Canton got a strong pass rush from Kearvins Theodore, Jude Albert, and Benjamin.

“I am extremely proud of our team today,” said Bohane. “They played hard and we improved in a lot of areas. A couple of year ago we lost a tough ball game to Sharon here, and at halftime we reminded our team of that loss and we were playing for those players who lost that tough game.”

The Bulldogs will now travel to North Attleboro to take on the Red Rocketeers tomorrow night starting at 7 p.m.

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Posted by Mike Berger on Oct 20 2017. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.