Swampscott hands Salem first loss of season

SALEM – All season long, the Swampscott football squad had been involved in nail-biters. Last night’s contest against Salem started out the same way, but the Big Blue ran away in the second half to oust the Witches from the unbeaten ranks, 47-26, at Bertram Field.The Big Blue (3-1) got things going on the opening kickoff. Having lost the toss, the team lined up in kick formation, with Jon Poth doing the honors. He topped the ball, with teammate Stephen Moran recovering at the Salem 37. Swampscott notched the game’s first points 55 seconds in when quarterback Chris Cameron (16-25, career-high 312 yards) fired the first of his five touchdowns, hitting teammate Trevor Wheeler over the middle at the 10, and the receiver did the rest for a 7-0 lead.”There was something that we saw on tape that we thought we could do,” said Big Blue coach Steve Dembowski of the onside kick, the second the Witches had allowed to begin a game this year. “I had asked people (in practice) if they wanted to try it, and Poth said sure. He tried it five times in a row (earlier in the week), and we decided to do it.”The Witches (3-1) bounced back. Keeping the ball on the ground throughout its possession, Salem notched valuable real estate, with the key play a 20-yard spurt by Melikke Van Alstyne (17-97) that put the club on Swampscott’s 26. Davis Kendrick added a 15-yard burst to the 9 moments later, and Salem closed the drive when quarterback T.J. Larivee found Ben Henderson with an 8-yard strike to bring Salem within 7-6 on fourth-and-goal.Swampscott increased its lead right before the end of the quarter. Cameron hit Moran and Poth with consecutive completions to place the ball at Salem’s 10. After a five-yard penalty pushed the Big Blue back to the 15, Cameron called a keeper, and his score made it 14-6.Swampscott would be thwarted on its next drive, and Salem came back to get within 2. Van Alstyne converted a third-and-1 at midfield, and Eugene Dela Cruz brought the ball to the 28 on a 12-yard gain. Van Alstyne broke through on the next play to bring the Witches within 14-12 early in the second period.Yet the Big Blue responded. Cameron and Wheeler hooked up for a 37-yard strike to Salem’s 25. After a six-yard gain by Cameron, the quarterback hit Wheeler in the corner of the end zone to make it 21-12.The Witches went three-and-out, and Swampscott took over at the Witches’ 32. On third-and-10, Cameron teamed with Patrick Freemont-Smith for 22 yards, and two plays later swung a soft pass to Kyle Shonio to make it 28-12.Salem still had something up its sleeve. Taking over at the Big Blue 44, Kendrick gained nine yards on first down, then Van Alstyne picked up the first down. Larivee would be dropped for a three-yard loss on the next play, and after an incompletion, Van Alstyne gained seven yards to put the ball at Swampscott’s 29 on fourth-and-six. Salem called the halfback option, with Kendrick tossing the ball to Ramon Rodriguez with 33 seconds left in the half. Van Alstyne added the two-point conversion, and the Witches trailed 28-20.”That’s something that’s hurt us all year, our defensive play on fourth down,” Dembowski said. “They had two big touchdowns on fourth downs, especially that one late in the half.”Swampscott scored on its first possession of the second half. The key play was a 33-yard strike from Cameron to Poth that put the squad at Salem’s 33. Cameron added a 19-yard jaunt on a third-down carry to put the ball at the 14, and he would team with Wheeler to put the Big Blue on top, 35-20.Cameron fired his fifth touchdown early in the final period, a 24-yarder to Moran. John DeAngelis added the Big Blue’s final score with a seven-yard run. Kendrick had the Witches’ final points with a 63-yard touchdown.”It was a good win against an unbeaten team on its home field,” said Dembowski. “And Chris (Cameron) was outstanding. He’s been improving every game.”