Beverly, Salem have had different experiences this fall

When Beverly and Salem square off for the 111th time on Thanksgiving Day at Bertram Field, it will be a match-up of two squads that have had very different seasons.Salem won last year, 34-30, behind running back Melikke Van Alstyne’s 302 rushing yards and four touchdowns. The win ended a seven-year Beverly winning streak and brought the all-time series record to 53-50-7.But this year, with Van Alstyne since graduated, Salem (2-8, 1-4 Northeastern Large) has struggled. The Witches opened with losses to Winthrop and Bishop Fenwick, failing to score a point in either contest. A victory over Saugus on Sept. 26 was followed by six consecutive losses before a win against Revere last week.The Witches’ biggest woes have come on offense, as the Witches switched from last year’s Wing-T offense to a Multiple I formation this season. Quarterback Brad Skeffington has thrown five touchdown passes – all of them to receiver Antonio Reyes – and added another five rushing scores, but Salem has posted an average of only slightly more than eight points per game. Running back David Kendrick has also contributed a pair of touchdowns, and he shares the rushing load with Max Feeley and Josh Gillooly.”Our offense has had a difficult time sustaining drives this year, and putting the ball in the end zone,” coach Scott Connolly said. “But we’ve been getting better and better all year long.”The good news for the Witches is that all five of the aforementioned players are juniors, and will be back again next fall with more experience under their belts. In fact, the team starts nine juniors both on offense and on defense.Defensively, Skeffington and Joey Binh lead the backfield, while Reyes is key at his linebacker position. Nose guard Joe King clogs the middle for Salem.”Our defense has been solid; unfortunately, they’ve been on the field a lot,” Connolly said. “But the last two games [against Revere and Lynn English], the offense has sustained some more drives, and kept the defense off the field, and that’s really helped.”Connolly said his team hopes to send its 16 seniors, including captains Tyler Mason and Josh Sanchez, out with a victory.”Thanksgiving Day football in Massachusetts is the best thing around,” Connolly said. “It would be a great win for the program, and more importantly, for the seniors.”The Panthers (6-3, 3-2 Northeastern Small), meanwhile, have had a successful season, highlighted by big wins over Lynn English and Swampscott. A loss to Marblehead two weeks ago ended the Panthers’ chances for a playoff berth, but coach Dan Bauer said his team has had a strong season.”Unfortunately, we came up a little short for the playoffs,” Bauer said. “But certainly, you want to end the season with a win.”Offensively, the Panthers like to operate through the air, using a spread offense. The team has thrown 17 touchdown passes this season; senior receivers Justin Marrs (eight), Steve DuBois (seven), and Curtis Manuel (two) have accounted for all of them.After missing the first three games of the season with a case of Mono, senior quarterback Mark Hannable has done most of the signal-calling. He has thrown 12 touchdown passes in six games and added a rushing touchdown. Junior Joe Wioncek started in place of Hannable the first three games threw four scoring passes of his own.”Certainly, anybody that prepared as much as he did for the season, and then to be faced with what he was faced with, it’s devastating,” Bauer said. “To see him have an opportunity to play and take advantage of that is tremendous.”Running back Dylan Terry and fullback Mark Theriault have handled most of the rushing duties for the Panthers, with each scoring four touchdowns.The offensive line is anchored by tackles Alex Ego and Nick Kozlowski, guards Theritch Roc and George Kallas and center Alex Traicoff.Bauer said Kozlowski, the team’s leading tackler, is the key to his team’s defensive success from his linebacker position. Roc and Theriault also line up at linebacker, while Manuel a