After his team beat Masco two weeks ago to snap its four-game losing streak, Marblehead High football coach Jim Rudloff was looking ahead to Beverly (0-6), his team’s next opponent on the Northeastern Conference Dunn Divisional schedule.
He said they would be focusing on the things they had been doing wrong while continuing to build upon the things they were doing right.
Last Saturday afternoon at Beverly’s Hurd Stadium, it appeared that the Magicians (2-4) had corrected many of those wrongs while adding to the list of the things they’re doing right as they totally dominated the host Panthers, 40-6.
Rudloff continued to employ both of his young quarterbacks — junior Colt Wales and sophomore Finn Gallup — to confuse defenses, and the strategy once again worked perfectly. Each QB accounted for two touchdowns to pace the offensive attack.
Wales was the team’s leading rusher with 99 yards, which included touchdown runs of 31 and 5 yards. Gallup was credited with 73 rushing yards, completing two drives with short jaunts of 3 and 5 yards that accounted for 12 of his team’s points.
Both signal callers were also proficient with their aerial games. Gallup completed four passes out of just five attempts for 125 yards. He completed a scoring strike to senior Chris DeWitt on a slant over the middle, and the captain did the rest to take it to the house for a 94-yard touchdown completion in the second quarter.
Wales had two completions in only four attempts.
The visitors had a commanding lead at halftime, 27-6. During the game, the Marblehead boys amassed 427 yards in total offense, with 300 of those yards coming on the ground. It was the team’s 11th straight win against the Panthers.
Senior captain Andy Palmer and junior Crew Monaco came up with one interception apiece to thwart a couple of Beverly drives. Senior captain Jake Scogland recovered a fumble on the Beverly 20 that led to the team’s first touchdown of the game, a 14-yard run to paydirt by Brady Selvais. Junior defensive lineman Justin Gonzalez was a constant force in the middle of the line throughout the entire game.
Gallup was also credited with a first quarter touchdown after dashing the final 3 yards to the
endzone. Sure-footed Greg Motorny then made his first of four successful extra point tries.
Wales began the second quarter with his aforementioned 31-yard TD run. That was followed by DeWitt’s electrifying 94-yard gallop to the end zone after hauling in Gallup’s screen pass.
Each quarterback had a rushing touchdown from five yards out in the second half to complete
Marblehead’s offensive assault on the Panthers.
Wales (99 yards) and Gallup (73 yards) were two of the leading Marblehead rushers against Beverly. But Brady Selvais was right with them, carrying the ball 12 times for 74 yards. DeWitt (2-112), Crew Monaco (2-13) and Palmer (1-6) were the team’s leading receivers.
The Magicians have a bye this week, but they will be working hard to prepare for visiting Danvers on Friday, Oct. 27, starting at 6:30 p.m.
As of Oct. 10, before the Beverly game, Rudloff’s squad had cracked the Top 16 in the Division 4 power rankings. They were ranked 16th and are sure to move up a couple of spots after Saturday’s win over Beverly.
The top 16 clubs in each division with at least three wins make the playoffs, which makes the game against the Falcons critical in Marblehead’s postseason pursuit.
Danvers (4-2) defeated Swampscott (3-2-1) last Friday night, 27-14. Danvers will face Masco Friday, Oct. 20 at home before the Marblehead clash.
