Peabody 11-22

T4
WEEKLYNEWS.NET - 978-532-5880
WEEK 1
THANKSGIVING FOOTBALL
Senior Carlos Hernandez, left, finishes off a run and senior Jared Ridley outruns Somerville defenders.
PHOTOS | BOB CARBONE
Tanners put on a very good spread
By Josh Kummins
PEABODY — For head coach
Mark Bettencourt and the Peabody
Tanners, this offseason
was all about implementing a
new spread offense.
It took a series to get the ball
rolling, but senior quarterback
Matt Jandrisevits led the offense
as Peabody cruised to a 36-7 win
over Somerville Friday night at
Coley Lee Field.
“The big question tonight was,
‘How were our kids going to
show what they were forced to
learn in a short period of time,
both offensively and defensively?”
Bettencourt said. “It was
about how much we can retain
and how much we can execute
when the shooting starts and the
crowd is here.”
Jandrisevits opened the scoring
with a rushing touchdown
before junior Angel Paulino and
senior Luis Guridys each scampered
into the end zone twice
apiece, helping the Tanners
break a streak of three consecutive
season-opening losses.
Paulino set the tone for Peabody’s
ground game on the first
series, gaining back-to-back first
downs on the first two plays
from scrimmage. Jandrisevits
had his first pass intercepted on
the next play, but the Tanners
returned the favor with a quick
defensive stand.
Jandrisevits responded quickly
on Peabody’s second series.
After Paulino moved the chains
with an 11-yard run, the quarterback
opted to keep the ball
on four of the next six plays. He
dashed into the end zone from
13 yards out for the game’s first
points before sophomore Kyle
Maglione successfully brought
in the 2-point conversion, making
the score 8-0 with 4:43 to
play in the opening quarter.
“(Jandrisevits) has a whole
new corps of receivers that he
has to develop a relationship
with, so he’s basically still learning
this offense; he’s run the
spread before, but not this type
of spread,” Bettencourt said. “I
thought he ran the ball extremely
well today and showed that he’s
a weapon for us with his arm and
legs.”
Louis Jacques Montina and
the Highlanders gained a pair of
first downs when they took over,
but the drive stalled at midfield
and gave Peabody the ball back.
Jandrisevits completed a pair of
passes to junior Brandon Caniff
during the ensuing possession,
but Paulino took the handoff for
the third time in five plays and
found the end zone. Maglione’s
second conversion doubled the
lead to 16-0.
Caniff recovered a fumble on
the first play of the visitors’ next
series before Peabody rattled off
a 10-play drive that ended with
Paulino scoring on a 13-yard run
with 3:08 left before halftime.
That was more than enough
offense for the Tanners, but
they carried all the momentum
into the break after stopping the
Highlanders a yard shy of the
end zone after they ran a dozen-play
drive that started from
their own 35-yard line.
“We’re looking for anything to
motivate these kids that they’re
doing things right,” Bettencourt
said. “It was perfect timing for
what we needed at this time.
Everyone’s learning. We made
mistakes, but they’re mistakes
that can be corrected. The more
we can keep preparing it, the
better we’re going to get.”
Jandrisevits busted off two
double-digit-yard runs on Peabody’s
first drive of the second
half. Guridys reached the end
zone for the first time in the
game with five minutes to play
in the third quarter as he dove
down the sideline from 39 yards
out. His two-yard run with 4:17
to play in the game made the
score 36-0, but Somerville broke
the shutout in the final 70 seconds
as Fred Castin dove in from
two yards out and Larsen Pierre
hit an extra point.
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Warmest wishes for a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. Good Luck Teams!
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PEDIATRIC DENTISTRY, ADULT DENTISTRY
& ORTHODONTICS SINCE 1975
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