How did the Abington High football team make it onto ESPN's SportCenter Top 10?

DUXBURY -- The first touchdown of the Ed Reilly Era of Abington High football was a memorable one.

With the Green Wave facing a fourth-and-15 on its first drive of the season, senior quarterback Michael Reilly (the coach's son) went deep down the left sideline, hoping to connect with junior Ryan Solimini. It appeared that the ball would be just beyond Solimini's reach, but he left his feet, extended fully and made a sensational catch for a 28-yard TD.

The grab was so good, it wound up the No. 5 play of the night on ESPN's SportsCenter Top 10.

"That felt really good," Solimini said of the reception. "Kind of set the tone for our offense for the game."

SportsCenter anchor Linda Cohn said, "What a catch by the junior!"

More: High-five: Duxbury star runs for 5 TDs as Dragons deny Abington's spirited upset bid

Solimini had only two other touches on offense -- a 6-yard catch and a 1-yard run -- but he made a big contribution on special teams, too, returning the second-half kickoff 83 yards for a score.

The Green Wave lost to Duxbury, 38-20, but Solimini said he was proud of how Abington stood up to the challenge of facing the two-time defending Div. 4 state champions. It also was the Green Wave's first game without legendary coach Jim Kelliher, who retired after 50 seasons in charge.

"I think that kind of previews our season – how we're going out there to compete against other teams," Solimini said. "It showed how competitive we're going to be this year."

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Abington player's catch lands on ESPN's SportsCenter Top 10 plays