LYNN -- Running the
ball was certainly in the game plan for Beverly last
night at Manning Field.
Coming off a double-digit loss the previous week to
Concord-Carlisle, the Panthers again took to the road
against Classical. Spearheaded by what proved to be an
elusive running game, the visitors eased to an
impressive 34-13 victory over the Rams after rushing for
more than 375 yards as a team.
"It's a wake-up call a little bit," said Classical head
coach Tim Phelps.
"Hopefully we can wake up from it."
Beverly junior Dom Abante rushed for over 140 yards on
the ground and had three touchdowns for the Panthers,
while fellow junior Brendan Flaherty and senior captain
Nick Theriault also had a touchdown each to help pace a
lethal Beverly offense.
"In terms of the (running) backs, that's what it's
supposed to be," said head coach Dan Bauer. "They're
supposed to complement each other and that's the whole
purpose of our offense. If we have something we take
advantage of it and if something shuts down another back
has to step."
It seemed as if the running game was effective no matter
who touched the ball for the Panthers, especially in the
first half.
The Rams were hit with a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary
roughness on the opening kickoff to allow Beverly to
begin the game's opening drive from its own 45-yard
line. Flaherty took things from there, as a 26-yard run
by the junior took Beverly into red zone territory
before he eventually punched it in from five yards out
for the game's first score.
The Panthers continued its relentless rush attack in the
second quarter, scoring three more times before the
half. Abate took a counter handoff 61 yards inside the
Classic 10-yard line before pounding it in from five
yards out to make it 12-0 with 9:57 remaining before the
break.
The Rams responded with a 32-yard score from sophomore
Brad Scuzzarella
to pull within
eight points, but Theriault came right back with a
four-yard rush to pay dirt to again make it a two-score
game. Then after Classical's third punt in four drives,
Abate found the end zone again - this time from nine
yards out - to make it a 27-6 contest just before
halftime.
Following another punt by the Rams on their opening
drive of the third quarter, Beverly needed just three
plays to again add to its lead. After a three-yard loss
on the opening play of the drive, junior Kenny Pierce
and Abate had back-to-back runs of 25 yards, with
Abate's scamper resulting in a touchdown to make it
34-6.
Bauer's defense then proceeded to remain poised despite
the big lead as well two late turnovers. Classical's
Joe Rose
intercepted Beverly's Dave Rollins late in the third and
the Panthers then lost a fumble on their first
possession of the fourth quarter. Nonetheless, Beverly
recovered a fumble of their own inside their own 10-yard
line to retake possession with just over four minutes
remaining in the game.
"We still played hard to the very end and I was very
proud of the guys," said Bauer. "Our defense really
played with more confidence and that was key in
tonight's game. I thought out guys did a nice job
executing their responsibilities."
Rams' senior quarterback
John Finnigan
hooked up with classmate
Rudy Collymore
on a 66-yard touchdown pass with 1:38 remaining to
account for the 34-13 final.
"We couldn't sustain blocks and we couldn't block their
defensive linemen," added Phelps. "When you get beat up
front both ways, it's tough to get anything going
offensively."
Beverly again returns to Manning next Friday night for a
7:00 p.m. matchup with Lynn English while Classical
travels to Malden next Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
