SOUTH BERWICK — On the first drive of the game, Biddeford High did something no other Class B team has done this year to Marshwood.
The Tigers scored a touchdown. And they did it in style. Quarterback Marc Reali crisply connected on three passes, and backed with positive runs, moved his team 58 yards capped by his 5-yard keeper.
Then the two-time defending Class B champs did what they’ve done to every Class B team they’ve played this year. The Hawks dominated, scoring 56 straight points and forcing five turnovers in Friday’s 56-7 win.
Marshwood (4-1) has outscored its four Class B opponents, 213-10.
Biddeford (3-2) lost its second straight.
Marshwood’s only loss was 28-27 at defending Class A Thornton Academy. In that game, all four TA touchdowns were either scored or set up by a big play.
“Our defense has played very well. That (first) series is really the only series I can remember this season where someone has driven it right down our throats,” said Marshwood Coach Alex Rotsko.
So how did the Hawks respond?
Well, do-it-all senior John Valentine took Marshwood’s first offensive play 58 yards on a sweep for a touchdown. Aidan Knowles made the first of his eight PATs and the game was tied about 20 seconds later.
Then Justin Bryant, the Hawks’ senior fullback, took Marshwood’s second play up the middle 68 yards for a score. Quarterback Connor Caverly scored on a 2-yard sneak and before the first quarter was done, Marshwood led 21-7.
Bryant finished with 138 yards on 14 carries. As the Hawks were rolling to a 42-7 halftime lead, Bryant continued to direct and encourage the Hawks’ defense from his inside linebacker position.
“You can’t just stop because if we can score 42 points in a half, so can they. So we have to stay locked in and make sure it doesn’t happen,” Bryant said.
Valentine (7 carries, 84 yards) was all over the field making plays. On defense his pass breakup turned into a swan-diving interception by Cullen Casey for the first of Biddeford’s five turnovers. Before the second quarter was finished, Valentine had added a 16-yard touchdown run, made a sharp break on a Reali deep pass for an interception that he returned 47 yards to set up a Bryant 3-yard touchdown, recovered a fumble, and thrown a 43-yard halfback pass touchdown to Casey.
“We work hard in practice and it shows on the field,” Valentine said. “I don’t know if we were kind of flat, that’s what Coach was calling it (on the first drive) but we were kind of figuring them out, I’d say. After the first possession we were all good.”
That was plenty of offense, especially as the Hawks’ defensive line led by tackle Owen Whisnant eliminated Biddeford’s inside run and increased pressure on Reali (5 of 12 passing, 75 yards, two interceptions) as the secondary tightened its coverage.
“We figured them out,” Whisnant said. “They were lining up wide and we figured out they were running it inside. Our defensive backfield took care of it after the first series.”
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