Marblehead celebrate’s quarterback’s return with a shutout

MARBLEHEAD – Three weeks ago, the Marblehead football squad lost signal caller Hayes Richardson with a knee injury.After missing the past couple of games, he returned to the Magicians last night, going 11-for-19 for 176 yards and tossing a trio of touchdowns.And for good measure, he also ran for a score, as Marblehead blanked the Falcons, 28-0, at Piper Field.”It was nice to see him rebound from that injury,” said Marblehead coach Doug Chernovetz of his quarterback. “He’s a competitor and an athlete, and rebounded very well from his injury.”One fact that hurt Marblehead (4-3) in its loss against Lynn English last week was that the Magicians coughed the ball up, creating several scoring opportunities for the Bulldogs. Last night, the team was determined not to let it happen again. The Falcons (1-6) had a second-and-9 from their 39, when quarterback Greg Ladd went to the air. His pass was picked off by cornerback Taariq Allen, and the Magicians quickly took advantage. Back Nick Haller found open room on second-and-10 for 23 yards to the Danvers 37. Richardson teamed with Allen for an eight-yard completion, then after a pair of runs by Haller moved th ball to the 23, Richardson found the receiver over the middle at the 5, and Allen (6-143) did the rest for the game’s first points.Both teams were plagued by penalties throughout, with the squads having touchdowns nullified on successive plays in the second quarter. Danvers had a touchdown brought back when running back Eric Burgos, throwing out of the halfback option, hit Ladd for an apparent 45-yard score which would’ve tied the game. The team was called for holding. Moment later, Allen returned a punt some 95 yards for a Marblehead touchdown, but the play was called back due to an illegal block.Due to additional flags, the Magicians were held at their own 11, and were forced to punt. Punter Brandon Lee’s punt went over the head of Colin Cooper, and when he went back to field the ball, couldn’t come up with it. The fumble was recovered by linebacker Matt Evans at the Falcons 34. Lee gained 19 yards on second-and-10 to the 15, then after a flag against Danvers spotted the ball at the 10, Richardson gained eight yards to the 2. He added a touchdown of his own on the keeper with just under 25 seconds to go in the half, and the Magicians were up, 14-0.”The turnovers killed us, and we just weren’t disciplined,” said Falcons coach John Sullivan, who saw his team fall to 1-6. “There are no excuses. Everybody has problems, and the good teams know how to respond to them. We didn’t respond well to the adversity that we had this week.”The Magicians continued to take advantage of their good fortune in the third quarter. Danvers had just stopped Marblehead on fourth-and-goal from the 2, and were on the move. Back T.J. Stanley (7-40) had just raced 20 yards to give the squad breathing room at its 30. Unfortunately, the snap was fumbled on the next play, and was recovered by Magicians linebacker Matt Comeau at the 27. It only took Marblehead one play to extend its lead, as Richardson teamed with Allen for a 27-yard strike that increased the lead to 21-0.”The problem (last week) was that we failed to execute,” said Chernovetz about the team’s turnover woes in its loss to the Bulldogs. “We made it a point to stay focused this week, to cut down on the mistakes, and I think we only turned the ball over once.”Richardson led the team on a 12-play, 70-yard drive in the final quarter, culminating with a 13-yard score to receiver Flynn McCormack with four minutes remaining.According to the coach, the team had extra incentive for the game. “Several of the (area) writers picked against us, and we used that as motivation. We’re looking to earn respect. I tell the team that we have the tools in the shed, and we’ll use them to build the program.”