by Tom Condardo
You just know both Pioneer head coach Neal Weidman and Pentucket head coach Steve Hayden have been looking forward to this game all season. Unfortunately for the fans of both squads, it's coming two weeks too soon. As both teams rolled through undefeated league schedules, they were likely eyeing each other, hoping for the inevitable showdown for the division championship.
The top seeded Kinney champion Sachems and #3 Baker winning Pioneers were both unceremoniously dumped from the playoffs last week and now must settle for an Unofficial CAL Championship game. That should have served as incentive for both teams as they attempted to pull themselves out of the doldrums of disappointment this week.Undefeated Champs
We all know what the Pioneers did in the Baker, running roughshod over all five league opponents. The Sachems didn't have quite as easy a time of it, but they ended up in the same place - undefeated in league play.
The Sachems started off with two easy non-league wins over Whittier (35-6) and Amesbury (28-0). Things got tougher once they got into their Kinney schedule. They squeaked by Pat Sheehan's Triton Vikings 13-10 then handled Newburyport 27-14 setting the stage for a big showdown with undefeated North Reading for undisputed possession of first place.
The Sachems made a huge statement with a relatively easy 28-6 defeat of the Hornets and then edged D3 Masco to remain perfect in league play. Pentucket tuned up for the playoffs by tuning up Coyle Cassidy 47-7 to cement their #1 D4N seed.
Then last week, in a rematch of the 2013 division final, Bedford shut down the Sachem offense and used some offensive trickeration to bounce Pentucket out of the playoffs 21-6.
Sizable Sachems
Pentucket has a new look this season, and it's much bigger than usual. I remember former Pioneer head coach Bill Adams always telling me how amazed he was when the Sachems would roll out a defensive line with player numbers in the 30's and 40's. They were small, but they were tough, fast, and aggressive.
They are all that this year as well, but add some size to the mix. The front four has been menacing all season. They will be one of the few teams that can match the Pioneers' size with defensive tackles James Lussier (6'1" 248) and Ben Thorton (6'3" 235). The Sachem defensive ends have been sack machines, harassing opposing quarterbacks all year. Noah Malhi (6'4" 187) and Joe Raimondi (6'0", 195) are fast and set the edge well.
They are tough to run on as run-first North Reading found out when the Sachems held the Hornets to 119 yards rushing. Even stud running back Matt McCarthy, who seems to start every game with 100 yards rushing, was "held" to 82 yards. I was at that game and the Sachems controlled the Hornets and forced them into throwing, something they do not want to do.
The Sachems wing-T running offense has been effective with Liam Sheehy (678 yards) and Kiernan Haley (593 yards) leading the way. They are not a big passing team but quarterback Finn Graham can be dangerous when he's looking for elusive receiver Travis Bouncy. Haley is also electric in the return game as evidenced by the 61 yard punt return he uncorked against North Reading.
The Sachems certainly don't lack confidence. In speaking about the Pioneers, Haley told Dan Harrison of the Newburyport Daily News today that "they have some really big kids. It's not going to stop us. We're working really hard and making sure we follow our rules and play to the best of our abilities."
Earlier this year in describing the pass rushing technique of him and Raimondi, Mahli told Harrison, "Basically, for both of us, it's our speed, being on the outside, being aggressive, using our hands and beating the guy on us. I've definitely been feeling it."
Sheehan's Take
I asked Sheehan for his take on the matchup since the Vikings will be playing the Sachems for the second time on Thanksgiving and he's probably more familiar with them than he cares to be.
"This should be a physical game," he said. "Pentucket has size and speed and are very tough defensively. They play a 3-4 and dare you to throw it. (Haley and Sheehy) are very dangerous - fast with good vision.
"I would say they don't have a great passing game but when they do Bounsy is their top weapon," he continued. "Their passing game is dangerous if you sell out on the run, but if you know when they are throwing the ball they don't have a ton of options.
"Their offense is the good ole fashioned wing-T and they are running it well this year," Sheehan went on. "I haven't seen much of Lynnfield but it sounds like they have the size to matchup. Pentucket will have problems with what I would guess is a very balanced Lynnfield pass/run offensive attack.
"In our game, we were able to throw the ball with pretty good effectiveness, but they completely took away our run game and we became one dimensional," he summed up. "Lynnfield will probably have better luck than we did on the ground with the big guys up front."
Sheehan also warned about their special teams. "Pentucket's punt/kick return game is very, very dangerous. That could be a factor."
Long History
This will be the 37th meeting between the schools. The Sachems and Pioneers met every year from 1973 when the CAL was formed until 2003. As Pentucket became one of the bigger schools in the league and the Pioneers became one of the smallest, they didn't meet for a couple of years. They reengaged in 2006 and 2007, both lopsided Sachem wins, and then took three more years off.
They renewed the series in 2011 and 2012, skipped 2013 and played again last season. The Pioneers won all of those matchups and head into West Newbury with a three game winning streak. Overall, Lynnfield leads the series 19-16-1.
Hayden, who celebrated his 200th win against Triton and comes into the game with 204 victories, is 13-14 against Lynnfield. Weidman is 3-0 vs. the Sachems.
Daylight Savings
This will be the Pioneers's first game in daylight and only the second they will play all year (Thanksgiving Day being the second). Because of SAT's, this Saturday's game won't start until 2 pm. So if the game runs long or goes into overtime, darkness could be an issue. To paraphrase the late, great Yogi Berra, it gets late early this time of year. You may want to bring your flashlights.
That's it for now. Check back Sunday night for some Leftovers.
No comments:
Post a Comment