Lebanon
“He said all preseason to give him the ball and he would lead, and he did that tonight,” said Lebanon coach Chris Childs, whose team next plays John Stark in two weeks. “That wasn’t pretty, but a win’s a win.”
The Raiders lost a fumble on the second-half kickoff, had a pass intercepted, missed two extra point attempts and failed to convert a 2-point pass play. They also committed five penalties for 40 yards. The bottom line for Childs, however, was that his team claimed a victory to start a formidable schedule. Lebanon’s final three games are against powerful Windham, Plymouth and Bow.
“I’m proud that with the score 26-14, we got some stops and hung together as a group,” said Childs, whose squad led by that score at halftime. “We just have to clean up some things, because it only gets harder from here.”
Merrimack Valley, which won only three games last fall, had no way to consistently stop the hulking Eylander. He carried 11 times for 48 yards and two touchdowns during the first half and 14 times for 91 yards and a score after intermission. With classmate and fellow running back Solomon Mellish out with what Childs said might be a concussion, Eylander at one point took 13 handoffs during a string of 17 Lebanon snaps.
The Pride “didn’t stop him, but give some credit to the line for opening holes,” Childs said. “When he reaches the second level, that’s where he’s really dangerous. I wouldn’t want to be a linebacker trying to tackle him.”
Quite true, but Eylander also runs somewhat upright, giving defenders shots at his torso and thighs. Should he learn to crouch and lean forward more as he hits the line, opponents will have an even more difficult time bringing him down.
“We’ve been trying to get him to lower his (shoulder)-pad level,” Childs said. “It’s gotten better, but some of that is tied to his flexibility. That’s something he’s got to work on a bit.”
Continuing tutorials are also needed for Lebanon quarterback Jon Willeman, but the sophomore didn’t look out of place during his first varsity start. He completed 6 of 9 passes for 100 yards and had a toss picked off. Willeman was planted violently in the grass on that play, but didn’t miss a snap as a defensive back on the next series.
“We’re going to have some growing pains with him, but he’ll only get better,” Childs said. “As we get further this season, we’re going to spread things out, because teams are going to load the box on us.”
Merrimack Valley went three-and-out during its first two possessions and had a pass intercepted two plays into its third drive. Lebanon turned the ball over on downs the first time it touched the pigskin, but took a 7-0 lead on a 1-yard Eylander run and the first of Wade Rainey’s two extra points. The Raiders went up, 13-0, on a 6-yard Eylander rush a minute into the second quarter and 20-0 on Ryan Sullivan’s 15-yard gallop four minutes later.
The Pride drove for a touchdown four minutes before halftime, but couldn’t stop Lebanon from going up, 26-6, after Willeman dumped the ball to Eylander for what became a 34-yard touchdown with 43 seconds remaining on the clock. On the next snap, however, Merrimack Valley executed a 57-yard double-pass touchdown and threw for a 2-point conversion just before halftime.
Lebanon’s Sullivan received the second-half kickoff and produced a good return before the visitors stripped and recovered the ball at the Raiders’ 34-yard line. The Raiders held, however, forcing the Pride to turn the ball over on downs at the 10. Merrimack Valley’s next drive was short-circuited when Sullivan intercepted a pass and was again stripped of the ball. This time, however, teammate Brad Plodzik recovered.
Plodzik himself intercepted a pass late in the third quarter, leading to a 4-yard touchdown run by Eylander. By that time, the visitors appeared exhausted and Lebanon essentially ran out the clock.
Lebanon had 18 first downs and Merrimack Valley had five. The Raiders’ offense gained 337 yards and its defense allowed 196. Mellish carried eight times for 30 yards, and Sullivan eight times for 68 yards and a touchdown.
Notes: Lebanon won the teams’ 2016 clash, 34-20, and finished the season 6-4 with a quarterfinal playoff loss. … Childs said Lebanon is down to 29 players after roughly half a dozen departed from the team. … Helping to lead the student-section cheers behind the north end zone was Raiders baseball player Derek Griffin, who rolled along in a wheelchair while wearing a pair of large protective boots on his lower legs. The senior suffered fractures throughout his body in a car accident about a month ago. … The Raiders awarded the game ball to first-year offensive coordinator Josh Duford, who spent the previous six years at Stevens. … Rainey is the son of Dartmouth College women’s soccer coach Ron Rainey. The sophomore played center, linebacker, kicked off and booted extra points. … Pride head coach Jim Coll wore a golf shirt with “Merrimack Valley Lacrosse” stitched on it. … Merrimack Valley is located in Penacook, a village in the northernmost reaches of Concord. Its alumni include 1978 graduate and former Major League pitcher Bob Tewksbury, who has been the mental skills coach for the Boston Red Sox and San Francisco Giants. … Penacook was the hometown of Robert “Red” Rolfe, a Dartmouth graduate who played for the New York Yankees, managed the Detroit Tigers and was the Big Green’s athletic director from 1954-67. Dartmouth’s baseball diamond is named for him.
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com or 603-727-3227.