Marblehead football defeats Salem

SALEM – The Marblehead football squad prepared itself for conference play (which begins next week) by bouncing Salem in the finals of its nonleague affairs. The Magicians doused the Witches, 35-13, at Bertram Field to improve to 5-1.Marblehead started the majority of its possessions with terrible field position within the first period and a half. Yet the Magicians quickly capitalized on a miscue to gain the game’s first lead. Salem (1-5) had a third-and-9 at its 40, when quarterback Brad Skeffington tossed a pass behind the line of scrimmage that deflected off a teammate, and was ruled a fumble as a result, with Marblehead recovering back at the 25. Quarterback Hayes Richardson didn’t waste any time, hitting receiver Matt Perlow with a bullet on the first play to give the Magicians a 7-0 edge.”That play gave us the early momentum,” said Marblehead coach Jim Rudloff. “It (momentum) was worrisome for a while, as it could have shifted either way (in the early going).”The Witches eventually drove to Marblehead’s 47 on their next drive, but were forced to punt. Marblehead soon faced a third-and-1 on Salem’s 46. but Richardson earned a pair of yards to pick up a first down. Teammate Will Quigley (10-41) then added up carries of 14 and 11 yards to spot the ball at the Witches 19. After a penalty moved the Magicians back to the 24, Richardson found Quigley on a short screen, and the back did the rest, swerving through the defense to increase the lead to 14-0 at the half.Both clubs traded possessions throughout the third quarter, but Salem put together a solid drive, culminating in a score at period’s end. Salem faced a pair of fourth-down situations, but was aided by Magicians penalties that gave the Witches first downs. Salem faced a third-and-13 from Marblehead’s 23 after being moved back five yards due to being offsides, yet Skeffington (10-23-4-132) found tight end Antonio Reyes in the corner of the end zone to put Salem on the board. However, Reyes’ conversion kick was blocked at the line, and lineman Alex Haigis scooped the ball up around the Magicians 25, returning the ball all the way to give Marblehead two points and a 16-6 edge.”That was another momentum swing for them,” said Salem coach Scott Connolly about the blocked/returned kick. “Instead of getting to within 14-7, we’re behind 16-6. There were plenty of momentum swings tonight.”The Magicians increased their lead on their first possession of the final quarter. The key play was a nifty 30-yard reception by Haigis, who turned around in front of the defender to make the grab at Salem’s 30. Moments later, Richardson (7-18-0-114) teamed with Quigley for a 20-yard screen, before Richardson contributed a 12-yard score for a 22-6 lead.Richardson added his second score of the game on the following possession with a 10-yard keeper, and Haigis returned a Skeffington miscue 40 yards for Marblehead’s final points. Salem added its second score in the game’s last minute, on a 15-yard Skeffington to Reyes touchdown.