WALTHAM — In a back-and-forth non-playoff battle at Leary Field that went down to the wire, the Peabody Tanners (1-9) made the big plays when it counted for their first win of the season.
Trailing 14-13 with 40 seconds to play, senior captain Corey Dooley caught a 6-yard touchdown from fellow senior captain Luke Maglione to put the Tanners on top 19-14.
After that, the Tanners’ defense came up clutch. Waltham had two shots at the end zone to steal the game, only to be denied by the Peabody secondary, which forced an incomplete pass from Hawks’ senior quarterback Ryan Dragone. Junior defensive back Jack Smith intercepted a Dragone pass to seal the win.
Peabody coach Mark Bettencourt is hoping the Tanners’ win will carry over to the Thanksgiving Day game at home against Saugus (2-8). Like the Tanners, the Sachems will come in to the game on the heels of a win, having beaten host East Boston 34-0 Friday night.
“We’re hoping this win will give us some confidence and momentum, and allow our seniors to walk off our home field as winners on Thanksgiving morning,” Bettencourt said.
Maglione completed 16-of-23 passes for 146 yards with one touchdown and an interception. He also ran for 13 yards on five carries.
Junior Mark Mendonca caught three passes for 51 yards, while junior Smith (4 catches, 31 yards), junior Brian Collins Dixon (5 catches, 29 yards), Dooley (3 catches, 29 yards), and freshman Ryan Maguire (catch, 9 yards) contributed to the aerial attack.
