When it needed to, Salem football kept coming up with big plays

The play was designed for Matt Soldano to carry the ball.

When the Salem High School quarterback rolled to his right, there was room for him to pick up a first down, and then suddenly, there was room for a whole lot more.

As the Nashua South defense moved in to try to contain Soldano, the senior kicked it into another gear and blew by the Panthers' secondary on the way to a 47-yard touchdown run, part of a 40-14 win for Salem on opening night.

Two plays before that touchdown run, the Blue Devils faced a fourth-and-2 at their own 39-yard line, when Dom Paci burst through the line for a 9-yard gain and a first down to set up Soldano's second touchdown run.

It was one of two fourth-down conversions by Salem in last Friday's win over South, and both led to touchdowns. On the Blue Devils' second drive of the game, they faced a fourth-and-1 at the South 46, when Josh Sibanda ripped off a 25-yard run, setting up another Soldano touchdown.

In all, on third and fourth downs, the Blue Devils were four of six in the first half, and on those four successful conversions, they averaged 17.5 yards per play.

"You have to take what the defense gives you sometimes and they were stacked to take our off-tackle stuff, which they did," Salem coach Rob Pike said. "When they do that, we’ve got other (options), whether it’s Soldano on the keeper or Josh out wide. Having fast guys helps."

But while Salem was able to come up with big play after big play, South struggled to take advantage of similar opportunities.

The Panthers had a first-and-goal from the Salem 10-yard line on the opening drive of the game, but turned the ball over on downs at the 9. After the Blue Devils scored on their first possession, they were called for a hit to the head on the kickoff, setting South up with good field position, but the Panthers ended up going three-and-out.

Salem attempted an onside kick after its second score, but South was able to recover and eventually had a first down at the Blue Devils 35-yard line. But a penalty and a sack stalled the drive and the Panthers ended up punting.

"There were a lot of things we had to just keep fighting," South coach Scott Knight said. "We could get a little momentum and then (South ran into) a brick wall.

"We just couldn’t stop their perimeter run game. When we had a chance to tackle, we didn’t. We’ve got to get off blocks better."

While Sibanda, Soldano and Paci all had over a hundred yards rushing for Salem, the Blue Devils also got a big contribution defensively from Jacob Emerson, a senior defensive back.

"He’s made a ton of improvements," Pike said of Emerson. "He was on JV last year and he just kept working and getting better. He’s one of the guys we count on. He’s a great cover guy, he’s a great receiver. He did a good job blocking. He worked real hard in the offseason. He’s a great athlete and a great kid."

Salem's defense was solid in shutting down South's perimeter running game, but the Panthers found success running inside with junior Jaylan Pacheco, who finished with 56 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.

Both teams are in action on Friday, with South (0-1) heading to Derry to take on Pinkerton (1-0), while Salem will take on Keene (0-1) in its home opener.