Last-minute Touchdown Extends Marblehead's Thanksgiving Streak

Swampscott and Marblehead faced off for their Thanksgiving game Thursday. || Brendan Cassidy

The turkey will taste a little bit sweeter on the Marblehead side of the border this Thanksgiving as the Magicians defeated the Big Blue, 29-22 in the annual meeting of the rivals.

While trailing 22-21, Marblehead quarterback Finn Gallup ran for a two-yard touchdown with just 22 seconds left in regulation to secure his team the victory in a wild back-and-forth matchup.

The loss caps off a 7-4 season for Swampscott. The Big Blue has now lost 12 straight Thanksgiving Day clashes with Marblehead.

“There is nothing like football on Thanksgiving,” said Swampscott Head Coach Peter Bush. “It’s important to the town, important to the community and most of all important to the kids.”

Despite the loss, junior quarterback John von Barta and senior wide receiver Chase Groothius gave Swampscott fans and coaches performances to remember.

Groothius hauled in three touchdowns, all on passes from von Barta, providing the Big Blue with a spark to keep the Magician defense uncomfortable for the duration of the morning.

Big Blue huddles on the field || Brendan Cassidy

“John is a heck of a player,” said Bush. “He’s smart. He studies. He’s a tireless worker.”

On the very first drive of the game, von Barta went deep, finding Groothius down the field for a 49-yard touchdown to give Swampscott an early lead.

The two sides entered their respective locker rooms at halftime with the game tied 14-14.

Some fans hadn’t yet retaken their seats when Marblehead returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a touchdown to take a 21-14 lead.

The score remained until about halfway through the fourth quarter when von Berta found Groothius streaking over the middle of the field. In the blink of an eye, Groothius was celebrating his 69-yard touchdown in the endzone.

“Chase helped us a lot this year,” said Bush. “He was a great leader as a senior.”

On the following extra-point, von Barta cast some magic himself. After fumbling the snap to hold the ball for the kicker, von Barta picked it up and found junior Luke Michigan open in the endzone for a two-point conversion to put the Big Blue ahead 22-21 with about 8 minutes left in the game.

The Magicians had the last laugh, marching 93 yards in under two minutes before Gallup’s game-winning touchdown run.

“We fought,” said Bush. “We battled from start to finish. Definitely would like to have a couple of plays back, but that’s football.”