Londonderry runs past Salem to reach D1 football championship game

LONDONDERRY - The Division I football season has been defined by the sheer dominance of Londonderry High School. Folks have had their own opinions on where the Lancers might slip up in their schedule, but Londonderry has proved everyone wrong week in and week out.

That was the case again on Saturday, as some thought Londonderry might get caught off guard by Salem in the Division I semifinals. The Lancers turned outside skepticism into a win once again, this time earning a shot at a D1 title with a 35-14 triumph over the Blue Devils at Lancer Park.

Undefeated Londonderry (11-0) will seek to achieve a perfect season and secure its first championship since 1998 when it takes on Exeter in next Sunday’s 6 p.m. title game at the University of New Hampshire’s Wildcat Stadium.

“This one feels great for us and I’m so proud of our team,” Londonderry quarterback Jake McEachern said. “We’ve worked so hard for this and we’re finally going to the state championship … I really just couldn’t be prouder of what our team has done.”

Saturday’s winning formula stemmed from the opening coin toss, where Londonderry deferred to the second half. The decision off the toss ended up generating a two-for-one opportunity as Londonderry scored in the final minute of the first half and then on the opening drive to take command of the game at 21-7.

Jeff Wiedenfeld’s 1-yard touchdown capped a 89-yard drive to end the first half and McEachern found Cole Keegan for 14-yard score to open the second half. Both touchdowns also came on fourth down.

“We knew we were getting the ball back (after halftime) and thought we could get that two-touchdown lead,” Londonderry coach Jimmy Lauzon said. “Salem isn’t necessarily built to come back in those situations. There was still a lot of time to go, but we wanted to feel comfortable with that 14-point lead.”

Londonderry’s fortunes have played off different players at different times all year. But for the second week running, McEachern was the driving force behind a Londonderry win. The senior threw for a pair of touchdowns, but his 164 yards and one score on the ground were of great importance.

McEachern had three runs of 20 yards or more, including a 61-yard touchdown to end any ideas of Salem comeback after the Blue Devils (8-3) scored the drive prior.

“I don’t do that too often,” McEachern said. “It felt good. I really wasn’t sure if I was going to get caught up to. My linemen made some great blocks (Saturday).”

Lauzon explained McEachern sneaks up on teams when they get tunnel vision in regards to stopping Wiedenfeld’s relentless running style.

“On that 3rd-and-1, I think everybody thought we were going to go to 'Wiedy' and most times we would’ve,” Lauzon said. “We just liked the look with Jake and he’s a great runner. We were excited about him all the way back when he was a freshman because of that running ability.”

McEachern threw both of his touchdowns to Keegan while Wiedenfeld found the end zone twice as well to go with his 102 yards rushing. Salem’s scoring came on behalf of a 9-yard rushing score from Josh Maroun and a 5-yard touchdown pass from Kaleb Bates to Mike Ference.

Londonderry’s defense didn’t do anything flashy to stymie the Blue Devils besides an early turnover on downs, but a lack of flash didn’t mean there was a lack of results. Salem generated just three plays that went for 10 yards or more while totaling 181 yards of total offense overall. Maroun had 80 of those yards on 19 carries.

“Talk about being motivated,” Lauzon said of his defense. “They don’t feel respected. We’ve given up touchdowns with JV guys at the end of games, so we didn’t pitch four shutouts like Salem did. The varsity guys are giving up about six points a game and they hear everyone talking about the offense and no one talking about what they’re doing. They’re embracing it all and did a heck of a job here (Saturday).”