October 2, 2026
EP-LSA Thanksgiving Day Football - Can the rivalry reach its 100th anniversary?
The longest state football rivalry between East Providence High and La Salle Academy has long cooled off. State interscholastic realignment and recruiting (directly or indirectly) of private schools has doomed the once great traditional rivalry. Where “back in the day” Thanksgiving Day crowds at Pierce Stadium and a cross section of fields used by La Salle once totaled around 10,000 fans, present day Townie-Ram games may see a couple thousand at best. During the height of the rivalry, most games were standing room only and you had to arrive by 8:30 am for the 10:00 start time if you wanted a good seat. Now, by the time the Thanksgiving game rolls around, the state super bowl has already been played and EP-La Salle on turkey day is a non-league game. This year’s game was the 96th playing of the once storied rivalry on Thanksgiving. The teams played in a non-Thanksgiving Day game in 1927 and there was no game in 1928. The first Thanksgiving Day game with EP-LSA was in 1929. While many believe the game may end soon between these two, others are hoping that the 100th anniversary of the game will be observed in 2029. An appropriate setting may be East Providence’s Pierce Memorial Stadium where many of the epic games were played. When La Salle’s football field/stands couldn’t accommodate the big game, the Rams opted to play every year at Pierce, until their new field was built. Most games were standing room only and you had to arrive by 8:30 am for the 10:00 start time if you wanted a good seat. Pierce was often known to house nearly 10,000 spectators during the rivalry’s glory days.
Although the plug could be pulled on this holiday rivalry any year now, traditionalists point to the classic history of the game. After a long period of equal give and take, La Salle has dominated the series. At one time, EP and La Salle were always among leaders for state football championships, But Hendricken has dominated of late. The RI leaders in total state titles are Hendricken 20, LaSalle 17, East Providence 15, Cranston East 14, Rogers 11. And so, the once storied Townie-Ram rivalry is all but gone as older Townie and Ram alumni remember it.
The intense rivalry has been on life-support in recent years since the game became a non-league, strictly exhibition game. "Beginning in 2014 all Thanksgiving Day “league games” must be played during the regular season. As a result, all semifinal games will be played on the Friday before Thanksgiving. The traditional Thanksgiving Day games will be played as in the past, but as “non- league” games. Divisional championship games will be played a minimum of seven days after Thanksgiving," said former RIIL full time director Tom Mezzanotte at that time.
A Passage in Time:
As Rhode Island’s oldest Thanksgiving Day football rivalry hangs on by a thread, other notable EP icons are also gone. Long time EP and LaSalle football coaches, Bill Stringfellow and Jim Deffley have died. John Bovi has passed, and his former iconic Bovi’s Tavern was sold and razed. The Tavern was a favorite gathering place for Townie and Ram fans during Thanksgiving week. The former East Providence High School has been knocked down, and a new state-of-the-art campus with its own gleaming sports stadium has opened. The new EPHS is a positive for the city and represents hope that the city’s promising student-athletes will “stay home” and not opt for a private school.
The Townies won last year, 27-26 and lost to La Salle 17-14 this year. EP won in 2015, 2017 but the Rams have forged ahead in the series, winning 56 times to the Townies 38 wins. Back in the day, the series was pretty even with both schools going on winning streaks. The Rams won consecutive years from 1942-1948 as EP won five times between 1949-1956. The Townies were hot, winning eight consecutive games from 1960-1967 and back-to-back 1969-1970 and again 1972-1973. Ep won seven times from 1977-1984. La Salle then dominated from 1985-1992. From 1993-1999, EP won five times. The Rams would win from 2007 to 2014 and eventually pull way ahead in the rivalry. For rivalry purists, here are the earliest scores: 1929- La Salle 19-6. 1930- East Providence 8-0, 1931- La Salle 50-0, 1932- East Providence 13-0, 1933- Tied 0-0, 1934 - La Salle 13-0, 1935- La Salle 7-0, 1936 - La Salle 18-6, 1937- East Providence 13-2, 1938 - La Salle 13-0, 1939 - East Providence 10-0 and in 1940 – Tied.
The 2025 Townies continued their recent improvement making the playoffs. The team dominated Pawtucket 48-9 to advance to the D2 semifinal but lost out to South Kingstown in a tough 21-13 game. Ep would lose a very close game to the Rams on Thanksgiving this year by a 17-14 score at La Salle. A large crowd of Townie supporters were on hand, many hoping that the rivalry would continue.
EPHS Boys & Girls Soccer
Both boys and girls Townie soccer teams finished great seasons. The teams advanced to the semifinals in each sport but fell just short of their goal to win a state championship. The girls team lost a hard played match against Prout going into overtime and two rounds of penalty kicks. The game remained tied beyond regulation time and two overtime periods and was eventually won by Prout after a penalty kick got by.
The boys team also advanced to the semifinal but fell short. The boys team ended a tremendous D1 season with a “heartbreaking loss” in a semifinal match against North Kingstown. The Townies seemed to dominate play as they maintained an aggressive possession through much of the game. Although Townie superb goaltender Kyle Desrosiers turned aside NK shots all game, the Skippers finally slipped a shot by as the game ending seconds ticked off. “Unfortunately, we suffered a 1-0 defeat. NK scored with 1:42 remaining. We hit the post twice and were unable to secure the go-ahead goal. Controlled possession for most of the game. The game can be unfortunate at times. I commend our team of young men. Thank you to my coaching staff and senior captains! Thank you for all the support this season,” Townie coach Tim Calouro said after the game.
EPHS Girls Volleyball
The Townies girls volleyball squad made it to the Division 1 championship game but lost 3 games to 1 in a spirited match against North Kingstown at Rhode Island College. East Providence was the second seed and finished with a successful 17-3 overall record. The Townies had to beat East Greenwich and La Salle during playoff action. East Providence had defeated NK once during the season but couldn’t pull off the rematch in the finals.
Volleyball Coaches Association post season awards. Keira Mullen and Ellie Vest were selected First Team All State and First Team All Division 1. Aliyah Evora was selected Second Team All State and First Team All Division. Vivian Bernhardt was selected Second Team All State and Second Team All Division. Ella Grimley was selected Honorable Mention All Division.
EPHS Unified Volleyball Wins D4 Championship
The Townie Unified Volleyball squad capped a successful season with winning the D4 State Championship last month at Hendricken high school. The team pulled out a 2-1 win over the RI School for the Deaf to win their Divisional Championship. The team had a tremendous season capped off with an exciting title win. The Townies had a straight set win over Chariho to gain the finals. Congratulations to all team members: Zachary Kochan, Franciellis Gonzales, Maxwell Resendes, Randy Vasquez, Collin Bedard, Emma Power, Mitchell Snead, Dianelys Motta, JackThomson, Justin Aguiar and Tylus Tate team captain.
Townie Tennis Gains Semifinals
The Townie tennis team also made it deep into the season with a chance to win a state championship. Although playing well, the team fell in semifinal action to Rogers High in a tight 4-3 match last month. “The team battled hard and although we had three girls out, we played very competitive tennis,” said head coach Slade Sharma.
2025 Winter Sports
The winter sports season has arrived. The Townies will feature teams in the following areas: Boys & Girls Basketball, Cheerleading Winter Competition, Gymnastics Girls, Ice Hockey Boys & Girls Coed, Indoor Track Boys & Girls, Swimming Boys & Girls, Wrestling
Winter Sports Schedules as of this date:
Boys Basketball:
12/11 6:30 PM @ Pilgrim HS
12/12 6:30 PM vs. Tiverton HS @ EPHS
12/15 7:00 PM @ Westerly HS
12/18 6:00 PM @ Mt. Pleasant HS
12/19 6:30 PM @ Cranston East HS
12/22 7:00 PM @ Barrington HS
12/26 6:00 PM vs. North Providence HS @ EPHS
12/29 1:00 PM @ Central HS
Girls Basketball:
12/15 6:30 PM vs. South Kingstown HS @ EPHS
12/17 6:30 PM vs. Toll Gate HS @ EPHS
12/22 6:30 PM @ Coventry HS
12/23 6:30 PM vs. North Smithfield HS @ EPHS
12/27 1:30 PM vs. North Kingstown HS @ EPHS
Co-op Hockey Boys
12/12 7:30 PM vs. SRA/PCD/NP/NS @ St. George's
12/13 4:45 PM vs. Narr/Char Co-op @ Boss Ice Arena
12/20 7:30 PM vs. Burr/Pono Co-op @ St. George's
12/22 6:30 PM vs. North Kingstown HS @ St. George's
12/26 3:00 PM Winter Classic vs. Burr/Pono Co-op @ Levy Rink
12/26 8:15 PM vs. SK/West Co-op @ Boss Ice Arena
12/27 3:00 PM Winter Classic vs. Burr/Pono Co-op @ Levy Rink
12/28 2:45 PM Winter Classic vs. Burr/Pono Co-op @ Levy Rink
Co-op Hockey Girls
12/6 4:00 PM Away Woodstock Acad. HS (CT) @ Pomfret School - Ice Arena
12/12 9:00 PM Away LSA/TG/PIL/WW Co-op @ Thayer Arena
12/19 7:00 PM Away Northern RI Yeti Girls Hockey Co-op @ Levy Rink
12/21 2:00 PM vs. CW/CE/EG/Scit/Chest/EWG Co-op @ Portsmouth Abbey
12/29 1:40 PM vs. Smith/Cov/MB Co-op @ Levy Rink
12/30 12:00 PM Winter Classic vs. No. RI Yeti Girls Hockey Co-op @ Levy Rink
12/31 1:40 PM Winter Classic vs. South County Girls Hockey Co-op @ Levy Rink
Wrestling
12/13 7:00 AM South County Invitational Wrestling Tournament @ North Kingstown HS
12/18 6:00 PM Tournament Invitational Wrestling Tournament @ La Salle HS
12/20 9:00 AM Tournament Joe Capone Invitational @ North Providence HS
12/30 9:00 AM Manny Vinhateiro Duals Tournament @ East Providence HS
Boys & Girls Indoor Track
12/6 TBD Injury Fund @ Providence Career & Technical Academy
12/10 5:30 PM Headley Division Dual #1 @ Providence Career & Technical Academy
12/16 5:30 PM Headley Division Dual #2 @ Providence Career & Technical Academy
12/20 12:00 PM RITCA Invitational @ Providence Career & Technical Academy
Boys Swimming
1/5 7:00 PM vs. Mt. Hope HS @ RWU Pool
1/7 7:15 PM vs. Pilg/TG Co-op @ EP Boys and Girls Club
1/14 7:15 PM vs. Midd/Rog Co-op @ EP Boys and Girls Club
1/17 12:00 PM vs. Moses Brown School @ EP Boys and Girls Club
1/21 7:15 PM vs. Blackstone Valley Prep HS @ EP Boys and Girls Club
Girls Swimming
1/5 @ Mt. Hope HS TBA
1/7 7:15 PM vs. Pilgrim HS @ EP Boys and Girls Club
1/13 7:30 PM vs. Burr/Scit Co-op @ Smithfield YMCA
1/14 7:15 PM vs. Midd/Rog Co-op @ EP Boys and Girls Club
1/17 12:00 PM vs. Moses Brown School @ EP Boys and Girls Club
1/21 7:15 PM vs. Blackstone Valley Prep HS @ EP Boys and Girls Club
2/5 5:30 PM vs. Toll Gate HS @ McDermott Pool
Coaches and team representatives are invited to contact bobrodericks@gmail.com to submit game results and to request special feature suggestions. Updates will be provided on ReporterToday.com.
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