Lebanon
“Eight dollars at the Co-op,” Jackson said with a chuckle at the NHIAA Division II contest’s close. “This was the closest I could get to maroon.”
Like the mums, Lebanon was a bit wilted by game’s end. The Raiders lost the use of standout Matt Eylander as a running back and linebacker when the senior pulled a hamstring during the first quarter. Not long after, starting quarterback Jon Willeman exited for good after suffering a facial gash that required a trip to the hospital for stitches.
Lebanon fumbled four times, lost two of them and had a punt blocked in the late going that gave Hanover the ball on the Raiders’ 2-yard line. The visitors chose to take a knee and run out the clock rather than attempt to score again.
“That first half was a battle, and they’re the most physical team we’ve played so far,” said Hanover coach Sam Cavallaro, whose squad led only 6-0 late in the second quarter. “When we scored right at the end of the first half, it seemed to kind of break things open.”
Hanover faced a fourth-and-6 at the Lebanon 21-yard line a minute before intermission. The Marauders had just committed a false start penalty, and there was a sense that momentum might be tipping the Raiders’ way. However, visiting quarterback Alex Mosenthal passed 14 yards to Graham Penfield, who beat cornerback Ryan Sullivan on a sharp cut to the sideline.
Two plays later, Mosenthal scooted into the end zone from 3 yards. Moises Celaya’s extra point made it 13-0.
When Griffin Young returned the second-half kickoff for an 80-yard touchdown and Celaya added another boot, the score was 20-0 and the result all but cemented.
“When you lose two leaders like we did, it’s tough to come back,” said Lebanon coach Chris Childs, who’s now left with fewer than 30 healthy players. “We don’t have very big numbers to begin with.”
The loss of Eylander, a hulking senior who rushed for 139 yards and scored three times in Lebanon’s opener, was a devastating blow to the Raiders’ offense. He carried four times for 21 yards and caught two passes for 26 yards during his team’s first two possessions on Friday.
However, Eylander pulled up lame without being hit and, on the same play, the hosts turned the ball over on downs at Hanover’s 11-yard line during the eighth minute.
Eylander didn’t carry the ball on a running play the rest of the night, and Lebanon’s next possession ended on its second play when Willeman lost a fumble. Hanover took over at the Lebanon 49-yard line. Three plays later, Griffin Young ran 31 yards for a touchdown. The extra-point attempt was blocked, and the visitors led, 6-0, with 1 minute, 26 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
It initially looked as if Willeman’s arm might allow the Raiders to survive Eylander’s absence. The sophomore had just completed his fifth consecutive pass to start the game when he absorbed a mammoth, straight-on hit by Hanover’s Michael Staiger. The quarterback landed on the back of his shoulder pads and with both players’ weights momentarily atop his helmet.
After rising from a prone to a sitting position and then to a tentative standing stance, Willeman needed to sit down again before being helped off the field. Childs said he didn’t know if the quarterback was concussed, but that he had suffered a significant cut below his lower lip.
Junior Ryan Preston replaced Willeman and immediately threw 46 yards to Solomon Mellish, setting up first-and-goal at Hanover’s 8-yard line. But Mellish fumbled on the next play, and the Marauders’ Eric Seltzer recovered. The visitors then drove 83 yards in 17 plays, the last being Mosenthal’s touchdown run.
Mosenthal carried eight times for 61 yards and two touchdowns, and Caleb Putnam rushed 16 times for 85 yards and a score. Young added nine carries for 61 yards and two touchdowns, and Mosenthal completed two of three passes for 28 yards.
Lebanon allowed 282 rushing yards and was held to minus-25 yards on 26 carries. Willeman completed all five of his passes for 63 yards, and Brad Plodzik caught five balls for 54 yards. Mellish carried 10 times for 18 yards and scored the hosts’ touchdown on a 1-yard run early in the third quarter, making the score 34-6.
Eylander re-entered the game in the second half as a shotgun quarterback. Childs said this was because he has a better knowledge of the Raiders’ passing game than Preston. Eylander completed seven of 13 throws for 81 yards and had his second attempt intercepted.
Hanover hosts Gilford-Belmont (0-3) next week. The Golden Eagles have been outscored, 97-6, to date. Lebanon next takes on Kennett (1-1), which visits St. Thomas today.
Notes: Each team blocked an extra-point try. … Before its 2016 regular-season victory over Lebanon, the Marauders had lost three consecutive times to their neighbors. Hanover won the teams’ playoff meeting last year. … Schuyler Cyrus, a 2016 Hanover graduate and former lineman, was reported to have walked on at the University of Akron (Ohio), but watched Friday’s game from the visitors’ sideline. Cavallaro said he hadn’t yet talked to Cyrus to find out why he was back in the Upper Valley. Cyrus is not listed on the Zips’ 2017 online roster. … Lebanon’s eagle mascot carried the “Don’t Tread on Me” Gadsen flag for a time Friday. The yellow flag features a coiled rattlesnake and dates back to the American Revolution.
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com or 603-727-3227.