Walsh Leads Swampscott to Win Over Beverly
Posted on November 6th 2011
By Jan Taylor
BEVERLY, Mass --- Mike Walsh scored three touchdowns as the Swampscott Big Blue beat the Beverly Panthers, 21-13 at Hurd Stadium in Beverly. With the win, the visiting Big Blue remained undefeated in the Northeast Conference and inched closer to a conference title.
Beverly started the scoring when Brendan Flaherty scored a 49-yard touchdown with 8:32 left in the first quarter. Dave Rollins kicked the extra point to put Beverly ahead 7-0.
Swampscott got on the scoreboard when Walsh hit the end zone with 1:45 left in the first quarter. Nick Meninno kicked the extra point to tie the game 7-7.
Beverly went ahead again when quarterback Dave Rollins connected with Brendan Flaherty for a 26-yard touchdown with 7:53 left in the second quarter. That touchdown put the Panthers ahead 13-7.
Swampscott went ahead for good late in the first half when A.J. Baker connected with Walsh with 1:07 left in the second quarter. Meninno’s extra point put Swampscott ahead, 14-13.
Beverly and Swampscott went back and forth for much of the third quarter and both teams remained in contention for a win. However, the turning point in the game was when Beverly’s Dom Abate suffered an ankle injury in the third quarter.
After a scoreless third quarter, Swampscott extended its lead to 21-13 when Walsh scored his third touchdown of the game with 9:23 left in the fourth quarter. Meninno kicked another extra point after the touchdown.
“This was an important game for us, especially since Beverly is a tough team and they are the defending champions in the Northeast Division,” said Walsh who will be playing football at Brown University next year. “Our defense really stepped up, especially in the second half.”
With the win, Swampscott improves to 8-1 and 3-0 in league play. Beverly, falls to 6-3 and 2-1 in the conference.
