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Amesbury Indians Football '07

Greater Lawrence-21, Lawrence-28 » Angie Beaulieu, Staff Photographer

Explosive Reggies test tough Amesbury D

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Monday, November, 26 By Hector Longo
Staff writer

To say that tomorrow afternoon's (4 p.m.) Eastern Mass. Division 3A semifinal is a clash of styles might be the great understatement of 2007.

Amesbury High's 17-point effort on Thanksgiving raised its season total to 199 points scored, good for a nine-point lead over Greater Lawrence Tech's Nate Adames alone.

The Reggies, champs of the Commonwealth Conference Large, represent offense and explosiveness, with All-Scholastic candidate Adames racing toward the 2,500-yard rushing mark with 31 touchdowns and counting.

Thom Connors' Indians defend, grind and capitalize on what the opposition gives them. Here is a team that, playing for a title and playoff berth on Thanksgiving, managed victory with a total of 79 offensive yards.

"The yards we got came at the right times," joked Connors, whose 5-5 Indians went 4-1 in the CAL small, earning the tourney berth because they beat co-champ Newburyport on Thursday, 17-12.

Both coaches figure their teams will have their hands full tomorrow.

Connors has shown his Indians the game films, a.k.a. "the Adames highlight reel."

"We're going to have to do all we can to stop Adames," said Connors, whose club gave up 14.8 points a game to divisional foes in the regular season.

"He looks like a tremendous back on film, the kind of back we haven't seen in the Cape Ann League this year. We have to pursue, gang-tackle, wrap up and hang on to bring him down." Connors will count heavily on his active linebacking quartet, anchored by Steve Serwon and senior Sean Blaisdell, to spy Adames. Expect active safety Jared Flannigan to stick his nose into the action.

Offensively, the Indians run the Delaware wing-T, opportunistically taking what the opposition gives them. Marion Wilder, a senior speedster, is the big-play threat on the outside.

Serwon, who has only caught 10 balls, finds a way to make them come. He's the clutch component every championship club craves.

The Reggies have put the Turkey Day loss to Lawrence behind them. Interestingly, the Lancers (3-8) pinned losses on both teams in this game, having dropped Amesbury back in September.

"It bodes very well for us that we can hang in there with Amesbury," said Reggies coach Tony Sarkis. "We have to play all four quarters to win. We can't take a half off and come back and play like we did against Lawrence."

The Amesbury-Greater Lawrence winner earns a Saturday trip to Gillette Stadium for an Eastern Mass. Super Bowl battle with the Blue Hills/East Boston winner.

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