Rams begin tune-up for N-O season Friday

By Mike Wertman, Sports Writer Posted 8 December 2021 at 9:20 am

Photo by Cheryl Wertman – Aiden Petrie and his Roy-Hart teammates will open the season Friday.

Looking to improve upon last season’s 3-9 Niagara-Orleans record, Roy-Hart will begin tuning up for the league campaign by visiting Notre Dame at 7 p.m. Friday.

Roy-Hart will also visit St. Mary’s, Lancaster on Dec. 14 before the home opener on December 16 against Cleveland Hill. The Rams N-O opener will be at home on Dec. 21 against Wilson.

Senior Aiden Petrie, who earned second team N-O All-League honors, heads Roy-Hart’s veteran group which also includes seniors John Conley, Dom Beyer, Brandon DiNeri, Vincent Buscarino, Bryan Baes and Brandin Masters.

The Rams roster also includes juniors Jamel Johnson Jr., Nate Beyer, Tyler Stewart and Andrew Waters.

“I really like the guys we have. It’s a good group of returnees and players coming up,” said Joe Pawlak. “The defensive end will be key for us. We want to play strong defense and run the ball on offense off of that.”

The Rams graduation and transfer losses included Jon Gillings, Tom Ragonese, Rhett Goodwin and Gavyn Boyle. Goodwin was a second team All-League honoree while Gillings and Boyle were both Honorable Mention selections.