SALEM — Rolling up over 300 yards of offense and punting just once is generally a recipe for success in high school football.
Then again, when the opposition doesn’t punt at all and scores every time it touches the ball, the taste can turn sour in a hurry.
Swampscott was nearly perfect offensively and scored the game’s final three touchdowns to pull away from Salem, 52-14, in the Northeastern Conference opener for both teams Friday night at Bertram Field.
The final score wasn’t quite indicative of the level of competition for the host Witches (1-3), who traded scores with the two-time defending NEC Lynch champion Big Blue (3-1) in the third quarter before the visitors went on an 18-0 run to balloon the score in the fourth.
“To start the third quarter, we answered the bell. We didn’t lay down and we came out and fought and battled,” said Salem first-year head coach Brett Segala, whose team actually won that period (14-13). “Then the fourth quarter happens and it gets away.”
Sophomore quarterback George Reyes threw for 246 yards for the Witches, connecting with running back Kendal Murga on a 47-yard screen pass for a touchdown and hitting junior dynamo Jeremiah Barahona for a 68-yard over-the-top TD as well.
The trouble for Salem was that Swampscott’s spread offense was undaunted by the hosts’ counter punches.
The Big Blue answered with scores of their own both times, recovered a fumbled kickoff and scored on the first play of the fourth quarter. They also scored on the last play of the game to total their most points (52) ever in the all-time series with Salem, which dates back to 1913.
Big Blue quarterback John von Barta ran for 96 yards and three touchdowns, with his 45-yard scamper to open the third quarter making it 28-0. He also threw for 183 yards, completing 7-of-11 passes with a 47-yard TD to running back Will Ficken on a screen pass.
For most of the night, the Witches had a pretty good pass rush … but von Barta managed to beat a man and find running lanes for both first downs and points.
“For a kid as tall he (von Barta is), he runs really well. He’s athletic, he slings it and he’s a true dual threat,” Segala said of von Barta. “Swampscott was firing on all cylinders. It’s a great program that does things right all the time and I give coach (Peter) Bush a ton of credit for that.”
In the first half, Salem moved the ball well by putting together drives of 10 and 11 plays before stalling out in scoring range. Murga, who ran for 64 yards and had 130 yards from scrimmage, was dangerous when he bounced it outside. Barahona also reached the century club for a second straight week, catching six passes for 146 yards.
“We need to be a little better about finishing drives, but that’s going to happen with a young team,” said Segala, who was also impressed with the way his sophomore QB Reyes bounced back after throwing an opening drive interception.
“At times, he looked like a sophomore, and at times he let it rip. He’s getting his feet under him, growing and getting better every week,” said Segala.
Swampscott outgained the Witches offensively, 392-324, and saw Will Rowe catch five passes for 134 yards. Running backs Jameson O’Keefe and Ficken scored rushing touchdowns and backup QB Quinn Palmer also found the end zone from seven yards out on the final play of the night.
Luke Michigan had the early interception for the Big Blue, and linebacker Doyle Delano proved to be a force on both sides of the ball.
Swampscott 52, Salem 14
at Bertram Field, Salem
Swampscott (3-1);7;14;13;18;52
Salem (1-3);0;0;14;0;14
Scoring summary
SW — John von Barta 6 run (Will Rowe kick)
SW — von Barta 6 run (Rowe kick)
SW — Will Ficken 5 run (Rowe kick)
SW — von Barta 45 run (Rowe kick)
SM — Kendal Murga 47 pass from George Reyes (pass failed)
SW — Ficken 47 pass from von Barta (kick failed)
SM — Jeremiah Barahona 68 pass from Reyes (Barahona pass from Reyes)
SW — Jameson O’Keefe 5 run (kick failed)
SW — Colin McCarthy 20 run (pass failed)
SW — Quinn Palmer 7 run (no try)
Individual Statistics
RUSHING: Swampscott — John von Barta 5-96, Will Ficken 9-56, Colin McCarthy 4-20, Jameson O’Keefe 4-14, Jason Fabiszewski 1-(-2), Rory West 2-(-1); Salem — Kendal Murga 16-64, Victor Dias 6-21, George Reyes 1-3, Jayden Peterson 1-(-10).
PASSING: Swampscott — von Barta 7-11-183-1-0, Palmer 1-1-26-0-0; Salem — Reyes 16-30-246-2-1.
RECEIVING: Swampscott — Will Rowe 5-134, Ficken 1-47, Adrian Vasquez 1-20, Doyle Delano 1-2; Salem — Jeremiah Barahona 6-146, Murga 5-66, Peterson 3-22, Iaian Holmes 1-10, Anthony Sone 1-3.