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Londonderry Lancers Football '07

Fri, Sep 14, 2007 07:00 PM @ Salem
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
Londonderry 7 7 3 14 31
Salem 0 7 7 0 14
Londonderry's Jim Curro dodges Salem's Peter Allain's tackle Friday evening during the Salem–Londonderry football game in Salem. Londonderry 31, Salem (N.H.) 14. » Jarrod Thompson, Staff PhotographerMore photos

Theodosi, Lancers stun Salem

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Friday, September, 14 By Dave Dyer
Staff writer

SALEM, N.H. | After Londonderry's surprising 31-14 victory over Salem last night, senior back Alex Theodosi claimed that he was only a little tired.

"Just some cramping at the end, that's about it," said Theodosi.

The host Blue Devils, however, must have been tired | tired of trying to tackle him, that is.

Running out of a tight single wing implemented by Londonderry assistant and former Haverhill High coach Denis Cronin, Theodosi carried the ball a whopping 43 times, piling up 250 yards and scoring all four touchdowns while handing Salem (2-1) its first loss of the year.

"I've never had anyone come close to that many carries," said 27-year Londonderry head coach Tom Sawyer, whose club is also 2-1. "We felt we could run the ball on them because the plays we ran can go inside or outside, and Alex is a great back.

"We got some good play from our line and our defense came through. The big difference this week was attitude. The kids were ticked off after last week's loss to (Manchester) West and they were determined tonight."

The determination of Theodosi, who the Londonderry crowd cheered with cries of "Theo, Theo," and his offensive line were evident on the opening drive of the game.

The Lancers, starting from their own 34, snapped the ball to Theodosi seven straight times and he took it 66 yards for a touchdown, culminating with a 34-yard sprint through the line on a fourth-and-3.

On Londonderry's next possession, it went 83 yards for a score with only slight variation. Nine Theodosi runs were complemented by two passes from Ryan Griffin to Jim Curro for 50 yards. After a two-yard Theodosi dive for a score, Cody Byrd kicked his first of four extra points, making it 14-0.

Salem made it 14-7 by scoring midway through the second quarter, when Kevin Sledge capped a 56-yard drive with a three-yard run, but the Devils were fortunate they were only down 14-7 at halftime. They failed to execute a fake punt on their next possession, giving Londonderry the ball on their 27.

The Lancers drove to the 14 in the closing seconds of the half, but three incomplete passes were followed by a missed field goal try.

Two turnovers in the second half cost Salem dearly, the first coming when the Devils fumbled away the second half kickoff, giving Londonderry the ball on its 31 and eventually leading to a 22-yard Byrd field goal and a 17-7 Lancers' lead.

The second came early in the fourth quarter when Salem had the ball near the 50 and seemed to have some momentum. It had narrowed the score to 17-14 late in the third quarter when a 13-yard James Stewart TD run followed a 54-yard option pass from Shane McMahon to Sledge.

But on first-and-10, Lancers' senior Brandon Jackson sprinted untouched from the left side of the line, blindsided Salem QB Hal Landers, causing a lost fumble that he recovered on Salem's 37. Seven Theodosi runs, the final from seven yards out, mixed in with two by Scott Worth, provided a commanding 24-14 lead with 3:45 left.

A final 48-yard scoring run around the left side with 1:30 left capped the scoring for both Theodosi and the Lancers.

"This was right up there with any of the good wins we've had in a long time," said Sawyer. "We really needed this and I thought the offense produced and the defense played much better than it had been."

Among those standing out on defense for Londonderry were big William McKeon (5-10, 240) in the middle and linebackers Kyle Connors, and Gary Glines. Griffin played well on both offense and defense in the first half but a possible mild concussion forced him to the bench for almost all of the second half.

For Salem, James Stewart (9 carries, 53 yards) led the ground game, which was limited to 150 yards, and also had a solid game defensively, but it was generally not a performance that Jack Gati will look back on with any kind of appreciation.

"The bottom line is that they have a great back (Theodosi), they physically came off the ball better than we did and we didn't execute when we had to," said Gati. "And we were undisciplined, which I'm embarrassed about as a coach."

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