With his team routinely on the wrong end of so many lopsided scores this fall, Dedham coach Keith Comeau usually chooses to accentuate the positive aspects in his team’s defeats.
So while the final score was similar to the previous eight contests, at least the Marauders were able to take more good things from Saturday’s 42-14 loss to Newton North at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill than in their other setbacks.
There was the experience of playing at a college stadium, the emergence of three sophomores with very little varsity playing time stepping in and providing a big lift for a depleted offensive line, and there was the impressive performance of the Marauders passing game led by junior quarterback Dan O’Connor, who was 19-of-32 passing for 204 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“This is a great facility and a great environment and the kids were a little wide-eyed when we got off the bus, but it’s obviously a good thing that BC lets Newton North play here,” said Comeau. “We’re very young up front so I’m proud of the way those guys performed in the second half. We have three sophomores (Matt McIssac, Mike Reda and Kyle Downing) starting on the offensive line right now who have really never seen any varsity experience, so I’m proud of the way they came together and kept their confidence up.”
The Marauders nearly matched the Tigers offensively but they were done in by a pair of punt returns for touchdowns and a fumble recovery for a score. Dedham passed for 204 yards but had just 19 rushing while Newton North ran for 220 yards and passed for 44. While Dedham managed to move the ball, they were unable to finish off its drives and put any points on the scoreboard until midway through the third quarter with the game already well in-hand with the Tigers up 42-0.
“We moved the ball pretty well, we had a little bit of problems with the shotgun snap, but we did move the ball,” said Comeau. “An interception, two punt returns, that really hurts. The sticking point for us all season has been stalling on drives. It was very good to see us at the end there finish two drives off. That’s definitely a positive for us.”
After picking up a first down and driving into Newton North territory on the game’s opening possession, Dedham was forced to punt from the Tigers’ 48. Senior Ben Kiley fielded the punt at his own 16, raced down the right sideline before cutting back to the middle and going 84 yards for the touchdown for a 7-0 lead just 2:09 into the contest.
After the Marauders again put together a nice drive down to the Newton North 14-yard line, senior Kourtney Wornum-Parker intercepted O’Connor in the end zone. The Tigers then proceeded to go 94 yards on 14 plays – 13 of which were running - in seven minutes capped by a 8-yard touchdown pass from Conor O’Neil to Wornum-Parker on fourth down for a 14-0 advantage with 8:34 left in the half.
On the second play of the ensuing possession Newton North intercepted O’Connor for the second time on a leaping pick over the middle by senior Alex Westlund at the Dedham 40. After a 36-yard connection between Kiley and O’Neil (2-for-3 passing, 44 yards) down to the 3, the Tigers punched it in two plays later on a 1-yard sneak by O’Neil for a 21-0 lead.
Dedham again drove into Newton North territory but a pair of sacks by senior Andrew Donegan forced another punt. This time Wornum-Parker fielded David Sheehan’s punt at his own 29 and raced down the right sideline for a 71-yard touchdown for a 28-0 halftime lead.
Ben Clark made it 35-0 five minutes into the second half on a 3-yard run. It was 42-0 just 57 seconds later as Sheehan fumbled after getting hit following a reception in the flat and Faisal Mayanja grabbed the loose ball and scored from 3 yards out.
Dedham finally finished off a drive on the next possession. A 44-yard hookup between O’Connor and senior Nick Walch brought the ball into the red zone. Faced with fourth down at the Tigers 2, O’Connor found senior Kevin O’Brien (6 catches, 50 yards) for a touchdown in the left corner of the end zone on the final play of the third quarter.
Another long pass set up their second score as O’Connor hit sophomore Mikyle Hill (5 catches, 69 yards) for 41 yards. Three plays later, O’Connor found sophomore Michael Ryan in the corner of the end zone for a 19-yard touchdown with 3:51 remaining.
“We know Dedham has been struggling but they really hit out there,” said Newton North coach Peter Capodilupo. “They deserve a lot of credit. They’re down people and they keep hitting you. We knew it was going to be a very physical game and our kids matched their physicality.”
Dedham had trouble with the quarterback-center exchange in the first half, specifically in the shotgun formation, and Comeau was forced to move junior Frank Mahoney from fullback to center in the second half.
“He did a really good job at center,” said Comeau. “There were no bad snaps the entire second half. Going from running back to the offensive line isn’t the most popular move for a lot of kids but he knew right away that we needed him there and I applaud him for that.”
The Marauders will look to break into the win column when they host Brookline on Saturday morning.
