Classical rebounds, takes it to Salem

SALEM – Lynn Classical coach Tim Phelps said his club got noticeably better during its bye week. He’ll get little argument from Salem following the 41-15 smack down the Rams laid on the Witches Friday night at Bertram Field.Click here for a photo gallery of Friday night’s game”We needed this. The kids worked hard during the bye week and they got better. They looked really good tonight. We had guys out with injuries and other guys stepped up. The guys who couldn’t play stayed in the game mentally. That tells me it meant something to them and that they cared how their teammates were doing,” said Phelps after the Rams leveled their record at 2-2. Salem slipped to 1-4.Diminutive senior back Rudy Collymore rushed for a game-high 88 yards and three TDs, including a scintillating 61-yarder in the fourth quarter. Senior quarterback John Finnigan ran for two scores and passed for a third as the Rams chewed up real estate (345 net yards) and clock, running 46 total plays compared to Salem’s 29 (10 in the first half).”Rudy stepped up and I’m happy for him. He’s not the normal guy in that position but he got a chance and he stepped up,” Phelps said.The Rams’ game-opening 70-yard scoring drive featured a fourth-and-three conversion from their own 37 and a 45-yard Finnigan to Brad Scuzzarella connection and was capped by Finnigan’s one-yard scoring plunge. Scuzzarella scrambled for the two-point conversion after a high PAT snap for an 8-0 lead.”We’ve hurt ourselves in the past but tonight it worked. It’s a gut feeling,” said Phelps of the early fourth-down gamble that set a positive tone.Classical’s second possession began at the Salem 42 after Joe Rose harassed Salem’s Jonathan Crimble into a four-yard punt. Collymore bounced in from five yards for the score. Tevin Young’s PAT made it 15-0 with 8:32 left in the half.It took Salem all of 1:09 to tie it. First, sophomore Shakir White found a seam and returned the ensuing kickoff 82 untouched yards. Christian Dunston’s two-point flip to Patrick Charlton made it 15-8. Then, on the first play after Joshua McRae’s diving interception at the Classical 38, Dunston lofted a scoring strike to Nick Paine, who adjusted nicely on the ball near the goal line. Crimble’s PAT tied it, 15-15.Classical re-asserted itself immediately with a 60-yard drive. Collymore’s three-yard sweep one play after Finnigan’s 27-yard rumble made it 21-15.The Rams converted on the second of two late first-half turnovers by Salem. Steve Sam’s leaping interception with 1:02 left in the half put them in business at the Salem 25. Finnigan delivered a six-yard scoring strike to Rakeem Ifill slanting across from the right six seconds before intermission for a 27-15 lead at the break.Classical sealed the deal early in the second half. After Jeff Beck and Devin Crayton engulfed Salem’s Chad Coehlo for a one-yard loss on fourth-and-one at the Classical 46, the Rams covered the 53-yard distance 10 plays. Scuzzarella ripped off a 27-yard run to the Salem 26 and Finnigan swept left from nine yards for the score. Young’s PAT made it 31-15.Collymore’s 61-yarder was the icing on the cake early in the fourth quarter. He momentarily disappeared in the scrum near the scrimmage line, ducked under one would-be tackler, squirted between two more, popped into the secondary and outraced the pursuit as the Classical sideline erupted in jubilation.The Rams will look to build momentum into CAL/NEC Tier One when they take on winless Gloucester Friday night. “They’re still Gloucester and we lost to them only be seven last year. That game still weighs heavy with us but this is a chance to begin league play with momentum,” said Phelps.