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CHaD Notes: Captains picked

Sarveen Shafiyan-Rad didn’t come off the field during his senior season at Bishop Guertin. That won’t be the case Friday night, but you can expect Rad to get plenty of time at wide receiver  for the West when it faces the East in the sixth annual CHaD East-West New Hampshire All-Star Game.

Rad, a Nashua resident, caught 57 passes for 1,001 yards as a senior. On Friday he’ll be catching passes from Merrimack’s Justin Grassini, who set the state’s single-season record for touchdown passes last season.

“I’m not that big and I’m not that tall, but I can get open,” Rad said.  “In college I’m never going to be the fastest guy on the field, but my technique and my route running — that’s why I’m always open.”

Rad’s parents immigrated from Iran. He began playing organized football when he was six.

Rad said he received a preferred walk-on offer from UNH, but couldn’t pass on the offer he received from Division II Assumption.

“I loved the coaches there (UNH),” Rad said. “I loved the program … everything about UNH being a New Hampshire kid, but Assumption was financially the best decision for me. The offer they put on the table was hard for me to turn down.”

The West will be trying to end a two-game losing streak when it meets the East on Friday (7 p.m.) at St. Anselm College. The West leads the series 3-2.

“It’s definitely an honor to be picked and play in this game,” Rad said.  “I think it’s important to recognize the top talent in the state, but more importantly play for a great cause — CHaD, the hospital and the kids.”

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The captains for this year’s game:

East: Christian Peete (Portsmouth), Vinny Panetta (Dover), Zac Garside (Londonderry) and Josh Thibeault (Timberlane).

West: Tim Daigneault (Nashua South) Henry Yianakopolos (Hillsboro-Deering/Hopkinton), Justin Grassini (Merrimack) and Nick Leahy (Bedford).

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The East roster continues to dwindle. Winnacunnet’s Liam Viviano suffered an ankle injury Monday, and will not play Friday. Viviano had been practicing with the first offense as a slot receiver, and with the second defense as a cornerback.

“He’s out for sure,” East coach Craig Kozens said. “It’s not broken, but it’s pretty bad. It’s twice as big as the other one.”

The West roster, which once had 40 players, is down to 34.

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Each team will have a walk-through practice at St. Anselm today. The practices will be followed by a barbecue for both teams.

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