Boys and Girls Club travel team off to successful start
BY STEVE SHEPPARD
After years of gearing up for just two games, the Boys and Girls Club sixth, seventh and eighth graders are playing a league schedule against off-island teams.

The Boys and Girls Club middle school team. Front row, left to right: Jonathan Vollans, Steven Reis, Alex Rezendes, David Watson, Michael Trott, Oscar Andersen, Chris Gould. Second row, kneeling: Mack "Stats" McGrath, Terrel Correia, Rory Huyser, Michael McInerney, Jamie Topham. Standing: Larry Bo Woolfolk, Ryan Murray, Taylor Hughes, Zac Gurley, Ryan Trainor, Michael Molta, Matt Bulmer, Tim Walsh, Jake Malloy, Andrew Benson. Back row: coach Andy Reis, coach Tim Bulmer, head coach Steve Murphy, coach Mike Connolly, coach Greg Marsh, athletic director Chris Cognitore.

Before this season, the middle-school-aged football players scrimmaged against themselves in preparation for games against Wells, Maine and the annual end of the year contest against Martha's Vineyard. "We'd sit here waiting for Wells and the Vineyard," former Boys and Girls Club athletic director Chris Cognitore said during the team's practice last week.

Cognitore found out last year that the Vineyard team played middle school teams from the Cape. With help from former Nantucket High School athletic director Jack Malloy, he worked during the spring to get the Nantucket team involved. The team is now in the midst of an eight-game schedule that features four home games and four away games.

It didn't take long for the team to adjust to off-island competition: so far the squad is 3-1, with the lone loss coming last Thursday at Martha's Vineyard. The Vineyard scored the winning touchdown with 27 seconds left in the game to win 14-6. Unlike previous years, when the two teams met just once, there'll be a chance to even the score when the Vineyard comes here in November.

"Letting them play together as a team for a full year means a lot," noted head coach Steve Murphy. "We get to teach them more. It's fun."

The main benefit is that the boys can develop as a single team, rather than splitting up into two or three practice squads. They'll also be better prepared for traveling off-island when they reach high school, Cognitore said.

Although the team plays middle school teams, it is still very much a Boys and Girls Club outfit, with the club, helped by private contributors like the Nantucket firefighters' union, picking up travel expenses. Hy-Line Cruises and Shearwater Excursions also have been generous to the program, Cognitore said.

Cognitore credited the enthusiasm of the players, and the dedication of volunteer coaches Murphy, Mike Connolly, Andy Reis, Tim Bulmer and Greg Marsh, for the team's early success. "Without these coaches we wouldn't be where we are," he said.

Island support has been strong as well. Close to 200 fans cheered on the team two weeks ago during its 36-14 victory over Nauset.

Upcoming home games will be held against Falmouth Nov. 1 at 3:30 p.m., the 11th annual Seaside Bowl against Wells Nov. 11th and the rematch with Martha's Vineyard on Nov. 18.

Cognitore, who moved to Florida last week after four and a half years with the Boys and Girls Club, hopes to return for the Vineyard game.

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