CLEVELAND — The Perry Pirates High School football team prepares for OHSAA state championship.

What You Need To Know

  • Perry Pirates football team practiced on snow days

  • Domenick Lamacchia is a middle linebacker for the Pirates and put his all on the line to win a state title
  • Seniors talk about final moments on the team

Domenick Lamacchia is a middle linebacker for the Pirates and put his all on the line to win a state title. He said while their school football field was covered in snow for the past few days, that didn’t stop them from practicing.

“There is no off days for us. If we want to win, we got to put in the work no matter here elsewhere. No matter where it is, we’re always putting in the work, we’re trying to get better, we’re trying to win,” he said.

Athletic director TJ Rockwell said there’s no time to make excuses.

“We’ve got a little bit of snow left, but probably 98% of it has been cleared, thankfully. It’s about 50 degrees and sunny. The last two days, we’ve actually been very fortunate to head out to Spire, which is actually an athletic complex in Geneva, Ohio, just about 15 minutes away,” Rockwell said.

Rockwell said the school had to pull out money to use the facility, but the team is willing to do whatever it takes to keep their undefeated record.

“Obviously, successful beating tough competitors like Kirtland, Geneva, South Range, Harvest Prep, especially Kirtland. I think that was the momentum,” he said.

Lamacchia said he kept his eyes on the prize, knowing that he’s closer to the end of his high school football journey.

“I have two more practices here, this one and then tomorrow. It’s kind of nostalgic if you know what I mean? It’s like I know it’s coming to an end, but I’m going to end on a high note,” he said.

And that’s exactly what Lamacchia has been doing. And when it’s all said and done, Lamacchia’s message for his senior teammates was to be present in the moment.

“They know it’s going to be their last game unless they’re playing in college, but for the majority of us, it’s the last game ever. So I think we got to enjoy it, you know, put it all out there,” he said.