RallyNorth.net

Fri, Sep 28, 2007 06:30 PM @ Merrimack

Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Final
Timberlane	0	17	14	13	44
Merrimack	0	0	7	7	14

Timberlane runs wild over Merrimack

Saturday, September, 29 By Bob Albright
Staff writer

MERRIMACK, N.H. | The winless Merrimack football team had just put its first points of the evening on the board and in the process had cut a once imposing Timberlane lead to just 10.

All of a sudden, the packed Merrimack stands came to life and a blue wave of newfound optimism rippled through the bleachers.

Then James Dionne fielded the ensuing kickoff.

Gathering the ball on the Owl sidelines at his own 20, the senior speedster followed his blocking and reversed the entire field, racing down the Merrimack sidelines for the score.

Game, set, and match.

"I felt like we needed to get some momentum at that point," said Dionne of the score which opened the floodgates in a 44-14 rout of the Tomahawks.

"It was set up to go right and I just followed my blocking. I think it really swung the momentum." It was a body blow from which the reeling hosts never would recover.

"I think scoring like that after they had just scored was huge," Owls head coach Mike Pariseau agreed. "That really changed things."

Running virtually at will all night long behind a line that just wouldn't quit, one of the quickest backfield tandems in the state in Dionne (11 rushes, 127 yards, 1 TD) and sophomore fullback Derek Furey (13-167, 2 TDs) had a field day. In all, the Owls racked up 327 yards on the ground to improve to 3-2 and 3-1 in Division 2.

"We've run well all year," said Pariseau. "Those two guys are pretty tough to catch and I though our line blocked very well."

On defense the Owls were nearly as proficient, especially in the secondary where Kevin Baker, Stephen Hackney, and Wesley Grew all picked off Merrimack quarterback Chris Conley in the first half.

With the ground game in peak form, quarterback Dean Bidgood did not have to air it out, but shined when he did. Leading 10-0 with just under five minutes to play in the half, he hooked up with Drew Smith. The senior made the over-the-shoulder grab in stride. The 22-yard pass play made it 17-0 at the half.

Furey and Dionne each made the most of their touches in the final half. Taking a deep pitch to open the fourth quarter, Dionne, who was a key cog on the Owls' Eagle-Tribune All-Star 4x100 relay team last spring, got a great seal block from his tight end and was off to the races 60 yards down the Owls sidelines.

On the next possession, Dionne picked up 37 more yards on the very same play. Furey notched the final score of the game when he burst 33 yards up the middle, shrugging off a hit at the 20, for the score.

The Owls will look to keep churning out the yards Friday night when they host a tough Exeter squad, which is 3-1 heading into today's game vs. Keene.