Octorara's 2011 Football Roster

Thanks to Jack Marino

#	Name	Year	Position
5	Jacks, Tyron	12	FB/LB
6	Gooden, Alex	9	QB/DB
7	Massey, Ray	12	WR/DB
10	Brown, James	12	WR/DB
12	Cooper, Charles	12	RB/DB
15	Soloman, Dan	12	QB/DB
18	Reynolds, Nathan	9	WR/DB
19	King, Mitch	12	RB/DB
20	Lochman, Dareis	9	RB/DB
21	Ruger, Dann	9	WR/DB
22	Ferguson, Chad	11	WR/DB
23	Cooper, Corey	9	RB/DB
24	Lloyd, Jarred	12	WR/DB
25	Traini, Nick	12	WR/DL
26	Lombardo, Mike	11	RB/DB
27	Robinson, Nick	10	RB/DB
28	Hill, Jorey	10	RB/LB
30	Pitts, Anthony	12	RB/DB
31	Thompson, Terrel	10	WR/DB
33	Clark, Anthony	12	RB/DB
34	Ford, Kadeem	12	FB/LB
35	Norris, Malik	10	RB/LB
36	Nunez, Miguel	9	RB/LB
38	Navaro, Mike	12	RB/LB
39	Rossiter, Chuck	11	RB/LB
41	McHenry, Derrick	9	TE/DL
42	Murray, Bernie	10	RB/LB
43	Hoover, Mark	11	RB/DB
44	Dinorscia, Anthony	11	TE/DL
46	Hart, Bret	12	WR/DB
47	McKenna, Drew	11	WR/DB
48	Weathers, Jared	12	RB/DB
50	Conforti, Nick	10	OL/LB
52	Hayes, Isaiah	12	OL/DL
54	Knox, Nathan	9	OL/DL
58	Alonzo, Luis	11	OL/DL
59	Howe, Dan	11	OL/LB
60	Zavala, Jesse	12	OL/DL
64	Walls, Vincent	10	OL/DL
65	Schmeltzer, Matt	9	OL/DL
66	Dipedro, Michael	10	OL/DL
68	Stiles, Ray	11	TE/DL
70	McHenry, Patrick	11	OL/DL
71	Sperber, Dylan	12	OL/DL
72	Young, Ryan	10	OL/DL
73	Talamont, Matt	9	OL/DL
75	Gregor, Brandon	9	OL/DL
76	Walls, Patrick	9	OL/DL
77	Nunez, Eric	11	OL/DL
78	Warburton, James	11	OL/DL
80	White, Devante	10	RB/DB
83	Mason, Darion	12	WR/DB
87	Sellitto, Luke	9	WR/DB
88	Turner, Mike	12	TE/DL
51/49	Walton, Tyler	12	RB/LB

Octorara Preseason Football Update

SOUNDS FROM A BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY LATE-SUMMER MORNING

By Jack Mariano

What a beautiful, late summer, Saturday morning in the country.   

Recent rains have made the grass and meadows turn green again.  The sunshine raising the corn to their highest heights sporting the tassels on each stalk.  The smell of farms and the sound of a rooster crowing in the morning!  What a wonderful day!  

So, picture this scene and add these sounds to it:  The yell of “hut-hut”!, the grunting of athletes and the pop of the shoulder pads as players make contact!  It is pre-season football at Octorara.

The Octorara Braves scrimmaged the Bishop Shanahan Eagles on Saturday morning.  Scrimmages are probably just as exciting as the second half of NFL pre-season exhibitions (I really don’t call them games).

Scrimmages have no punts or kick-offs and so there was no chance in watching any exciting Chucky Cooper run backs but from my vantage point, there were some nice catches from Anthony DiNorscia and Mitch King.  Kadheem Ford and Tyler Walton chipped in nicely on defense with some substantial plays. 

Anchoring the program, as always were the dedicated staff of the Octorara Football Boosters Club. Nestled in their refreshment trailer,  Jewell Shivery and Barry and Janet Kretchmer were hard at work providing drinks, hot dogs, french fries to all customers.   

Beside the trailer were tables full of Octorara Football tee shirts, sweatshirts and other accessories.   

The Booster Club has been in existence since 2004 and the club has been furnishing refreshments at the games since the inception.   

However, games are not all they do!  In fact, this coming Friday night August 26 at 6:30  p.m. the club will be hosting their annual spaghetti supper at the Octorara Primary Learning Center – the cost for a dinner is $7.00. Come meet all the players and their families.   

The club has also been busy furnishing food at the Twin Brook Winery on Friday evenings for their summer concerts.  The football boosters club catering is also available to cater your event…please call them!

Although Jewell and her husband Steve’s son Blake graduated earlier this year, they continue to be very active in the program.  The dedication of this small band of residents runs deep….they even supply their own electricity.  As there is no electrical hook up for them at the practice field, there was a generator whirring from the back of a pick up truck for the entire morning.

According to Jewell, the club started out as the sole financial resource for the football team (when they were a club).  The Octorara School District began to help fund the program when it became a varsity sport a few years ago.  As it is with many of the activities in the OASD, the school board has cut back on a lot of the funding.   

The club seeks help from anyone interested in helping them provide this sport for the kids of the school district.  Officers for the Booster Club: President - Paul Solomon; Vice President - Bernie DeLellis; Secretary - Deb Mattis; Treasurer - Jewell Shivery.  More information about the Octorara Football Booster Club can be attained on their web site www.octorarafootball.org

Octorara Football Braves Aim To Improve On Ches-Mont Debut Season

Octorara's Blake Shivery dives for an extra yard after catching a pass during the Battle of the Braves game against Pequea Valley last September. (Photo by Bill Rudick of the Daily Local news)

Note:  Parkesburg Today welcomes the first of many postings by Jack Mariano about the Octorara sports scene.

By Jack Mariano

Octorara hopes to improve on its debut last year in the football heavy Ches-Mont League when they open their non-league schedule against Bishop Shanahan on the practice field behind the Primary Learning Center on Saturday, August 20 at 11 a.m.

 Braves' quarterback Danny Solomon (Photo by Bill Rudick of The Daily Local News)

According to Jed King, head coach for the Braves, “I think we are going to have a really exciting year, with a lot of key returnees.”

“I have approximately 20 seniors on the football team, and a lot of them have spent time with me in the weight room this summer.

“Danny Solomon is definitely the leader of our team. He is coming back with already 2,500 yards passing under his belt, so he will definitely be a stand out.

“Charles Cooper and Mitch King will both also be exciting when the ball is in their hands. As slot receivers and speed halfbacks, they are exciting to watch and add a lot to our team.

The Braves battling Kennett in 2010

“We also have our first team All-Ches-Mont tight-end, Anthony DiNorscia. Anthony is about 6'5" and had a decent amount of touchdowns for us last year.

“He is complimented by our 6'3" big- framed wide receive James Brown, who also had over 20 receptions last year.

“Upfront the offense is anchored by Patrick McHenry, who is a 2-year starter left tackle.

“Defensively we are looking for Michael Turner to make plays in the back field, and Chuck Rossider and Tyler Walton as linebackers to plug holes in the middle.

“Our secondary is also very strong because we have a strong group of skilled positions that play both ways.

“Our goal is to qualify for the district playoffs, but we also have our aim on trying to win our league.

“We are excited to get back to football as it approaches us in the next 2 weeks.”

Looking at the schedule, our Braves square off against the Pequea Braves in the second annual “Battle Of The Braves” game at  Pequea Valley High School on Friday, September 16 at 7 PM.

The September portion of the schedule are mostly games on the road except for a September 29 home game versus Sun Valley which will be a Friday Night Lights event beginning at 7 p.m. The Braves are also slated to “host” a home game against Haverford under the lights and on the synthetic turf of the Pequea Valley High School field on October 6^th at 7 p.m.

Perennial rivals Oxford and Unionville loom late in the season with home games scheduled against both opponents. 

The final game of the 2011 – 2012 campaign will find the Braves battling against powerhouse West Chester Rustin on Friday, November 4 at 7 p.m. This November date should be a perfect football climate for the close of the season.