Here are the notable performances this past week from high school football players competing in Eastern Mass. conferences/leagues.
Division 1
Marcus DeJesus and James Vacik, Andover — Once again carrying the offense with 153 scrimmage yards and five touchdowns, DeJesus also came up with an interception, and Vacik dominated the defensive line with eight tackles, including four solo, and two of Andover’s eight sacks in a 56-21 win at No. 8 Franklin.
Jathian DeJesus, Haverhill — The senior receiver was flying in Friday’s 34-28 shootout win at Leominster’s Doyle Field, producing seven catches for 132 yards, 44 rushing yards, two touchdowns, and 6 tackles.
Darren Dornezon, Methuen — On just three catches, the sophomore receiver broke off 146 yards and two touchdowns in a 50-22 non-playoff win over MVC rival Lowell.
Michael Kimmelmann, Xaverian — Will Wood finished three drives with touchdowns and rushed for 116 yards and Kimmelmann, a senior, complemented his quarterback with 16 carries for 153 yards and a touchdown in a 49-0 rout of No. 11 Natick.
Thomas Quirk, Acton-Boxborough — Leading the Revolution with 346 yards and five touchdown passes, including the go-ahead score to Huey Fahad with 1:16 remaining, the senior captain impressed in Thursday’s 38-35 non-playoff win over Beverly.
Division 2
Cam Croom, Westford — The senior churned out 145 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries to power the No. 7 Ghosts past No. 10 Quincy, 35-18.
Skylar DeJesus, Chelmsford — In a 49-14 rout of No. 3 Algonquin, the senior was 11-for-12 passing for 224 yards and four TDs of 3, 14, 68, and 56 yards. He also collected 66 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Drake Dixon, Peabody — The junior ran for 134 yards on 24 carries to help the No. 6 Tanners earn a 21-0 first-round win against No. 11 Lincoln-Sudbury.
Jackson Gearin, Billerica — The senior ran for touchdowns of 16, 33, and 4 yards and tossed one of 42 yards to Dan Venezia, who scored twice, to lift the No. 3 Indians to a 40-7 pounding of No. 14 Woburn.
Dom Vozzella, Winchester — The No. 12 Red & Black surged to a 40-29 defeat of No. 5 North Quincy, with the senior rushing for scores of 34, 50, and 13 yards.
Division 3
Wanderson Dos Santos, Milford — The senior punished defenders all night, racking up 284 yards on 19 carries and four touchdowns in a 41-12 runaway over Masconomet.
Nick O’Brien, North Attleborough — In addition to totaling 89 yards rushing with a touchdown, the senior returned a fumble 80 yards to the house in a 42-0 blanking of Plymouth South.
Ethan O’Connell, King Philip — The bright lights of the postseason proved no issue for the freshman, who rumbled for 140 yards and three scores on 20 carries in a 35-12 drubbing of Reading.
Gio Scarpellini, Mansfield — In a 28-14 triumph over Malden Catholic, the senior completed 10 of 17 passes for 202 yards and a pair of scores to Darrian Sanders (four catches, 125 yards), in addition to snaring a 38-yard pick-6.
Division 4
Mason Falcone, Walpole — The senior racked up 230 rushing yards and five touchdowns as the fourth-seeded Timberwolves breezed past 13th-seeded Westfield, 48-18, on Friday.
Grayson Foley, Scituate — In a 21-0 shutout over 16th-seeded Ashland, the senior contributed 24 carries for 200 yards and three TDs on offense, plus six tackles and an interception on defense for the top-seeded Sailors.
Zach Fultz, Danvers — The junior spearheaded a 30-27 triumph over 14th-seeded Bedford with 127 rushing yards, three touchdowns, and a pair of 2-point conversions for the third-seeded Falcons.
Will Harrison, Tewksbury — The second-seeded Redmen cruised past 15th-seeded Wakefield, 35-7, behind touchdown passes of 25, 10, 35, 18, and 11 yards from the junior.
Liam Murray, Duxbury — The sophomore quarterback finished 17-of-22 passing for 223 yards and two touchdowns, and added 40 rushing yards and a score on the ground, as No. 4 Duxbury defeated No. 13 Nashoba, 35-0, on Thursday.
Division 5
Isaiah Robles, Northeast — Powering the fifth-seeded Golden Knights to a 34-25 first-round win over No. 12 Hanover, the senior rumbled for 250 rushing yards and three touchdowns, two in the fourth quarter.
Gavin and Tristan Lane, Shawsheen — The brothers rushed for two touchdowns apiece as the top-seeded Rams blanked No. 16 Oakmont, 39-0, to advance to the quarterfinals. Gavin, a sophomore, churned out 167 yards, and Tristan, a senior, added 118 yards and a fumble recovery.
Max Furman, Nauset — The junior back was dominant in a 26-20 triumph over Dover-Sherborn, rushing for 272 yards and four touchdowns.
Nathan Zexter, Bishop Stang — En route to a 42-8 non-playoff victory against Greater New Bedford, the senior rushed for three scores, including a 53-yard scamper, and nailed four extra points.
Henry McMurray, Falmouth — Making his first varsity start at linebacker, the sophomore racked up 17 tackles in a 44-20 victory over Seekonk.
Rowan Merryman, St. Mary’s — The senior rushed for a score, snared an interception, and tossed a 66-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage as the No. 8 Spartans routed ninth-seeded Greater Lawrence, 28-8, for a first-round win.
Division 6
Anthony Barrasso, Bellingham — The junior drilled a 27-yard field goal with four seconds left to send the Blackhawks into the second round, 17-14, over Tri-Valley rival Medway.
Aedan Borges, Joseph Case — The senior propelled the Cardinals to their first playoff win in 34 years, 42-37 over Fairhaven, rushing for 182 yards and five touchdowns, while adding a 45-yard fumble recovery for a sixth score. Borges also kicked four extra points and ran in a 2-point conversion.
Lucas Deraps, Lynnfield — In a 28-13 first round win over Dennis-Yarmouth, the senior ran for 185 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries.
Dom Farrell, Winthrop — In a 22-6 first-round upset of Stoneham, the junior needed only three carries to total 185 rushing yards, including touchdowns of 83 and 96 yards.
Jack Reilly, Abington — In a 46-28 win over Wilmington, the senior completed 13 of 16 passes for 222 yards and four touchdowns.
Royce Whitney, Triton/Ipswich — In a 45-14 non-playoff rout of Weston, the sophomore ran for 236 yards and four touchdowns on 13 carries.
Division 7
Jayden Fraser and Dillon O’Brien, South Shore Tech — Fraser, a senior, rushed for a 7-yard tying touchdown before adding a go-ahead 2-point conversion, and O’Brien, a junior, did a little of everything (17 carries, 175 yards; 2 catches, 91 yards; 3 total TDs) to power the Vikings past Nantucket, 28-26, in a non-playoff thriller.
James Joyce and Jed Seita, Cohasset — Joyce, a senior, rushed for a 55-yard touchdown and reeled in TD grabs of 20 and 50 yards from Seita, a junior, who added two rushing scores to lift the second-seeded Skippers in a 47-6 first-round win over No. 16 Gardner.
Marvelous Pleasant, Rockland — The senior rushed for 136 yards and three touchdowns, highlighted by a 64-yard score, to anchor the seventh-seeded Bulldogs in a 41-0 first-round shutout of No. 10 South Hadley.
Joe Puleo, Amesbury — In a 36-8 first-round win over No. 8 Leicester, the senior surpassed 100 rushing yards and had a pair of scores.
Division 8
Tommy Allen and Chaz Thomas, Cape Cod Tech — After Allen tied the game in overtime with a 3-yard touchdown run, his second rushing score of the game, Thomas broke the plane for the season-saving 2-point conversion and got his team the 28-26 first-round victory over Bartlett.
Anthony Brown, Lynn Tech —The junior powered into the end zone four times, highlighted by a 90-yard breakaway in the second quarter and a 60-yard dash in the fourth, as fifth-seeded Lynn Tech earned a 38-32 first-round win over Franklin County Tech.
Aavian Pena, KIPP — The senior broke free for two rushing scores, a 60-yarder and a 56-yarder as eighth-seeded KIPP blew past West Boylston, 34-13, in a first-round triumph.
Nick Sloboda, Nashoba Valley Tech — The senior QB rushed for 180 yards and three touchdowns for third-seeded Nashoba VT in a 60-6 first-round rout of Springfield International.
Preps
Rory Funke, Dexter — The junior scored on a pair of keepers, headlined by a 1-yard blast with 30 seconds left to lift Dexter to a 24-20 win over Choate. He was also 11-of-20 passing for 148 yards.
Ethan Hatch, BB&N — The sophomore from Lexington was 14-of-17 passing for 204 yards and three TDs in a 48-0 victory over St. Paul’s.
Luke Harrington, Lawrence Academy — Two of Harrington’s four touchdown strikes went to Isaiah Green, as the senior quarterback went 13-of-25 passing for 262 yards with zero turnovers in a 28-16 win over Belmont Hill.
Connor O’Neil, Pingree — Starting at quarterback for the first time, the senior linebacker went 12-of-15 passing for 186 yards and a touchdown, adding 86 rushing yards in a 22-16 win at Portsmouth Abbey.
Tyler Amaral, Graham Dietz, Joe Dimino, Trevor Hass, Brad Joyal, Jake Levin, Toby Moses, and Nate Weitzer contributed.
Nate Weitzer can be reached at nweitzer7@gmail.com. Follow him on X @nweitzer7.