By Patrick Z. McGavin- Photos by Jenn-Anne Gedhill
** Additional Photos are Available for Purchase at https://justallsports.zenfolio.com/p227757506 **
The artist looks out to a field, and sees before him every possibility, in movement, color and sharp.
Dominic Vita is a different kind of hybrid quarterback, the all-purpose talent as a surveyor of beauty and truth.
He looks around, and sees only bliss and wonder.
“We work really hard in practice, and we work on a bunch of different things out there,” he said. “We get everybody out there, and then we just fine tune and work everything until it gets to perfection.”
Vita is the quarterback of a Jr Celtics 13U program stacked with talent at every conceivable position—athletes, runners, creators.
“We could do everything out there, and if the linebackers of the other team want to try something, their coaches are going to be scared at what we can do running or passing.”
The 13U were perfectly imperfect against the Aurora Gators. The scary part is that it hardly mattered.
Vita threw two long touchdown passes to Marshaun Thornton in the 33-0 victory in a Pop Warner League game on Sunday, September 10 at Main Park.
The Jr Celtics rolled despite having four touchdowns called by back by penalties, and a third touchdown—by Thornton—overruled by the lead official.
“Even when things don’t necessarily go our way, we always stay calm in our games,” Vita said. “We never talk badly about each other. We just come together, and keep scoring.”
For sheer talent and entertainment, few teams match the plus talent and hyper active capabilities of the 13U team.
Talent burns at every position, especially the skill positions or high end spots like linebacker or edge rusher.
“We have a lot of talent, but this is a team that comes to practice, and we work,” receiver and defensive end Kameron McGee said. “We got a lot of dogs on this team, high quality and high level players who can run the ball, and we have a lot of people who can throw the ball. We have a lot of athletes on this team.”
After a wild and largely undisciplined and wayward opening quarter that featured two touchdowns called back by penalties on the opening drive, the Jr Celtics found their footing at the start of the second quarter.
A converted wide receiver, Shea Wells showed the incredible burst and exceptional athleticism.
In the closing seconds of the first quarter, he took a pitch and ran 55 yards untouched down the left sideline for the opening touchdown
The burst, explosion off the line of scrimmage, and the separation speed was something to behold.
“Last year I was the starting quarterback for a different team, and then I came to this team, and this is my first playing wide receiver,” he said. “I’m getting the hang of it because my coaches are helping me a lot, and they are teaching me the subtleties of the position and the rules.”
The breathtaking athleticism tends to overshadow the fundamentals undergirding the balance of the team.
With many of the elite talents playing both ways, they have the chance to impact the game twice, or even three times.
McGee, Thornton, Donte Brooks, DeAngelo Coates, Anthony Carter, Ryan Studenroth and Jonathan Beaver proved a simultaneous wrecking crew defensively, flying to the ball and stopping the Gators from any semblance of an offensive attack.
“In practice, we always get after it, and it’s always very competitive, and everybody is going after it 100 percent,” McGee said.
If the first quarter, with the mistakes and breakdowns, offered a tantalizing hint, the second quarter was a showcase of what was possible.
The quarter belonged to the playmaking tandem of Vita and receiver Thornton. The two dynamic talents hooked up for touchdown catches of 35 and 60 yards during the second quarter flurry.
“I will do anything I have to do in order to be effective out there,” Vita said. “I will stay in the pocket, or I will get on to the pocket. It doesn’t really matter. With guys like Marshaun and the other receivers, we all have really good friendships in or out of football.”
Thornton has an impossible and brilliant combination of hands, body control, quickness off the line of scrimmage, and the ability to get free in space.
“I like to play fast and physical,” Thornton said. “I like to just get out there, get to the ball, catch it, and do whatever I can do in order to help the team grow and get better.”
Even during the off-note moments Sunday, the multiple penalties that wiped out four touchdowns, the Jr Celtics maintain their composure and poise.
“We never point fingers anybody,” Thornton said.
With the vertical passing attack dazing the Gators, the Jr Celtics closed the game out with a different wrinkle.
The team adopted a power running game in the second half, featuring the slashing and bruising game of running back Donte Brooks.
He ripped off runs of eight, nine, seven and 11 yards, mixed in with one final magical connection between Vita and Thornton, before finishing up with a three-yard touchdown run.
“I can really do anything my coach wants me to do,” Brooks said. “I run the ball hard, and I get more than enough yards. I never let one person tackle me. I stay on my feet all the time. When I need to get that first down, we get the touchdown.”
As if the team needed a secret weapon, the Jr Celtics unleashed one final piece of the equation in elite kicker Colin Slaney.
He converted three two-point kicks. He closed out the game with a 35-yard field goal.
“I’ve played soccer all of my life, and I was ready for this kind of moment,” he said.
Indeed.
The Jr Celtics 13 team received brilliant efforts from all its players in the 33-0 victory over the Aurora Gators. The other contributors included Jayden Richter, Anthony Carter, Adam Studenmroth, Thomas Brown, Ryan Studenroth, Nicolas Flores, Kareem Crosby, Kellan Breen, Christopher Santori and Jonathan Osborne.
The JV Jr. Celtics took part in the celebration with their lyrical routines and artistic expression. The members included Raelynn Anderson, Vivienne Andresen, Kalista Balenciaga, Mia Calleros, Maleah Capadona, Grace Crowhurst, Ella Dobbelhoff, Alexis Firlit, Skyler Guinea, Emma Hamstra, Riley Hoffman, Audrey Larson, Roe Lubovich, Gracelyn Marinello, Charlotte McDonald, Charlotte Ozinga, Giulianna Ramus and Elle Taylor.
