Ben Squarcia shows up all over as Mashpee High football opens season with win over D-Y

YARMOUTH -- The Mashpee High football team's roster lists sophomore Ben Squarcia at three different positions.

So it came as no surprise when he had his fingerprints all over the Falcons 12-6 victory over Dennis-Yarmouth on Friday.

Throughout the game, Squarcia lined up at tailback, tight end, and linebacker for the Falcons. He finished with a pair of TDs in the win.

More: Barnstable student Sam Needham remembered in moment of silence before football game

As a team, the Falcons are a young group. Having graduated the bulk of  their starters, Mashpee is sending out a younger team on both sides of the ball and Squarcia is part of that group.

"We're playing a ton of sophomores," Mashpee coach Matt Triveri said. "I think we're playing six or seven sophomores. We're junior, sophomore laden, so these are first-time guys."

The sophomore provided all the offense for the Falcons in the game. Squarcia's first touchdown came late in the second quarter, when he broke around the outside to level the game at 6-6.

There was a bit of fate that resulted in Squarcia getting his touches. Squarcia found himself with an increased workload as his teammates dealt with some minor injuries.

More: Week 1 Cape Cod high school football scores and highlights

"When (senior running back Aiden) Cuozzo got dinged up a little, they started putting me in," Squarcia said. "We kept switching through me, (sophomore running back) Logan (Willis) and Cuozzo, just all getting good runs, so I think they kept going through us."

He would have to wait a while for his second score. Both defenses led the way in this matchup with the teams trading empty possessions throughout the entirety of the third quarter.

His second score proved decisive. With the clock winding down in the fourth quarter, Squarcia again broke outside, and muscled his way into the end zone to give his team their first lead of the game just over halfway through the fourth quarter.

Triveri admitted he didn't expect the level of production from Squarcia, but liked what he saw.

"Ben's a tight end, so he has to play tight end for us,"Triveri added "He played there (at TE), and I thought he did a good job, but he's a pretty good runner. Him, Logan, Aiden Cuozzo, all three backs played hard."

Squarcia's biggest plays of the game might have come after his second touchdown. The Dolphins quickly responded to falling behind picking up a first down in two plays. The Dolphins, led by sophomore quarterback Jayden Barber, were looking to quickly march down the field to potentially win the game.

More: Dennis-Yarmouth High football wants to get back on top

On first down inside the Falcons 50, Squarcia dropped back in coverage and was stride for stride with the Dolphins receiver and broke up what would have been a pivotal first-down completion.

Later in that same drive, he had a crucial tip that set up the game sealing interception.

The Falcons needed contributions from their young guys and many stepped up.

In addition to Squarcia, sophomore quarterback Dominic Matteodo (105 yards passing, 40 yards rushing) came up with clutch throws, and ran the offense effectively. Fellow classmate Vincent Pinnetti, helped run down D-Y sophomore wide receiver Peyton Kellett, in the open field of the first half, setting the stage for an interception a few plays later.

"We could've given up on that play... that's huge." Triveri said. "Just the fact that we played hard, (and) didn't get our heads down, it's a good sign"

The Falcons areo 1-0 on the season, and will face Nantucket on Saturday,  Sept. 17. The Dolphins start the year 0-1, and take on Boston English on Friday.

This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Mashpee High football team defeats Dennis-Yarmouth in season opener