Generals Week 2: Pentucket Moves The Ball In The Air, On The Ground

Last week, the Pentucket High School football team . This week it faces a similar foe from .

And if last year is any indication, it might not come down to two missed two-point conversions.

. The tandem looks just as formidable this season as it almost eclipsed the 200-yard plateau in its .

“(Hamilton-Wenham) is a dangerous team with a quick quarterback and a big, strong running back,” Pentucket coach Steve Hayden said. “They are big up front and are a very physical team.”

Hayden attributed strong team defense as a key in last week’s game. He knows he will need it again against the Generals, despite their close 6-0 victory at Triton.

Offensively the Sachems can mix it up with Nolan Dragon on the ground and quarterbacks Ryan Kuchar and Calvin Wildes under center. Kuchar found Dragon for a first half touchdown pass and then Dragon scored from close with 1:06 to play to cut the Sachems’ deficit to two points.

“Pentucket is a well-coached, hard-nosed football team that comes to play each and every game,” said Generals coach Andrew Morency. “I have been impressed with their running game, specifically running back Nolan Dragon.”

Pentucket showed quite a bit of resiliency. After it allowed the go-ahead score against Marblehead with 2:41 remaining, Nick D’Agastino returned the kickoff into the Magicians territory, followed by a long run to the six-yard line by Dragon. They scored with 1:04 to play but a swarm of Marblehead defenders stuffed the potential game-tying conversion.

“I liked the way the kids responded,” Hayden said. “They didn’t give up. They played to the end.”

Morency was impressed, too.

“They played Marblehead tough at their place, so it shows they can play on the road,” he said.