WATERVILLE — Coming off a 32-point opening night loss to defending Class D state champion Wells, Madison was looking for improvement at Class C Waterville on Saturday. With the Purple Panthers coming off a 33-point win of their own, the Bulldogs figured it wouldn’t be easy.
It might not have been easy, but it was certainly dominant.
Madison did just about everything right at Drummond Field, opening a 40-point halftime lead on the way to a 47-7 cross-class win. Both teams are now 1-1.
“We talked it up all week. This is what we want, from the opening snap until the final siren,” Madison coach Scott Franzose said. “We played tough, much better, physical swarm on defense. Guys were on assignment. Really, just simple stuff. It’s never easy, but the simple stuff… The kids did a great job prepping this week and I think it showed.”
Josh Savage ran for 167 yards on eight carries for Madison, including a 91-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Quarterback Eric Wescott ran for 133 yards and threw for 89. Wescott ran for three scores and threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Christopher Melancon.
“Coach (Franzose) put in a good game plan,” Westcott said. “Everyone worked hard this week, especially our linemen. They knew what to do and they got it done today.”
Madison scored on three plays of 50 yards or more, including a 52-yard run by Wescott in the final minute of the first half, and a 61-yard run by Jacob Meader on a fake punt in the final minute of the first quarter, which gave the Bulldogs a 20-0 lead. Franzose said when studying film of Waterville’s season-opening win over Belfast, the Panthers looked passive on punt returns.
“We noticed they were looking to get a jump into the return. One of the first things I saw was them sitting static, so I said well, we ought to have that ready to go,” Franzose said. “We’re not a big fake punt team. We thought it was a good situation around the middle of the field. It was a good shot and they executed it very well. I didn’t really expect it to go for a touchdown. I would’ve just taken a first down. They did a heck of a job with the wedge.”
Waterville got on the board early in the third quarter, with an 11-yard touchdown run by Trafton Gilbert (11 carries, 65 yards).
“We just didn’t trust our teammates and we didn’t trust our reads,” Waterville coach Matt Gilley said. “That’s it. They execute really well, but they don’t do a million things. Read your keys, and it brings you to the right area to make the football play.”
There was a scary moment with 6:13 left in the first quarter when Hayden Nadeau, a freshman lineman for Madison, went down and lay motionless on his stomach for several minutes. Nadeau was placed on a board and taken from the field on a stretcher and transported via ambulance to a hospital. Franzose said Nadeau took a helmet to his lower back and suffered numbness in his legs.
“By the time the ambulance got there he was getting feeling back. That’s definitely a positive,” Franzose said.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
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