PEABODY— After completing an undefeated season against rival Salem in its last regular season game, Peabody clinched the No. 4 seed in the Division II state tournament.
A reward for going 9-0: home-field advantage.
In a Sweet 16 matchup against No. 13 Arlington, the Tanners used every ounce of momentum their home crowd gave them en route to a 34-0 victory at Coley Lee Field.
The first quarter started slowly for both teams, and the only lead the Tanners mustered came off Dominic Scalese’s 22-yard field goal after Peabody couldn’t capitalize on a first-and-goal.
Halfway through the second quarter, The Tanners’ offense started to click. Luke Maglione (151 yards, 2 TD) found his favorite target, senior Eli Batista (110 yards, TD), for a 40-yard connection, putting the Tanners in the redzone.
Later in the quarter, Maglione improvised well to escape pressure, throwing a dart on the run to Nicholas Dresser for a 22-yard touchdown (10-0).
After teams traded punts, the Tanners struck again as Batista’s explosiveness got the best of the Spyponders’ secondary once again. Maglione’s 62-yard bomb fell into the lap of Batista, who walked in for a 17-0 lead going into the half.
Scalese added another short field goal, and an 18-yard touchdown scramble from Alex Silva (35 yds, TD) put the Tanners ahead, 27-0.
The chances were the effect of swarming Peabody defense.
Senior Jaydin Mam put the icing on the cake, as his 13-yard rush with less than five minutes to play not only sealed the deal on Peabody’s victory, but also earned him his first varsity touchdown.
The Tanners forced Arlington into three turnover-on-downs and six punts. Leading the defense was the coverage play of Jayce Jean-Pierre, who was tested multiple times by Arlington deep shots.
Peabody will next host in the Elite Eight against No. 13 Arlington.
