North's Derek Finlay is stopped by Merrimack's Logan Day during Friday night's game in Merrimack. (Photo by Andrew Sylvia)

MERRIMACK – So much for rust.

After the tragedy surrounding the Alvirne program forced Nashua North into an unexpected bye week, the Titans bounced back with a convincing 49-7 victory over Merrimack on Friday night.

North scored on its first two drives, first on a 42-yard run for daylight by senior quarterback Derek Finlay and then on a 39-yard pass from Finlay to fellow senior Nick DiGesse. The second score came thanks to an interception on Merrimack’s second drive of the night by North senior Jordyn Raisanen-Andino, but the Tomahawks had better luck on their third chance with the ball.

Thanks to a botched punt, the first time North needed to punt in three weeks, Merrimack began that third drive on the North 40-yard line, field position that they managed to eventually convert into a 26-yard Sahil Mujawar touchdown run, cutting North’s lead in half.

At that moment, it looked like Merrimack may just be able to hang with what has been one of the best teams in the Granite State this year, but then the Titans reminded everyone why they have been one of the best teams in the Granite State this year.

North would record touchdowns on their next three drives, goal-line runs from senior Amaury Almonte, senior Jack Peters and junior Steven Rosario, respectively. The Titans would also score on the next drive after Merrimack’s touchdown, with Rosario returning a deflected pass 94 yards for a pick-six.

With a solid 42-7 lead at the half, North sophomore Luke Peters completed the tally sheet with a 28-yard run on the Titan’s first drive of the third quarter and the rest of the contest just melted away.

Finlay finished with 91 yards on the ground and 72 through the air in the victory. He probably could have put up more yardage if the outcome was in doubt, but ultimate he believes his squad was eager to get back on the field after the lack of a game last week.

“All week, you could tell everyone wanted to get back and play. All week, kids were flying around at practice. Usually we take it a little slow so nobody gets hurt, but this week everybody was flying around,” he said.

For North Head Coach Chad Zibolis, it was unclear whether Friday night’s contest would turn out the way it did or whether it might be a trap game given that North will be facing one-loss Bishop Guertin next week and Merrimack’s only in-state loss so far this year came against Bishop Guertin last month.

“Any given day, any team can come out and beat you up,” said Zibolis. “It happened to us last year in Keene, 33-0 in Keene. They beat us up, we came out and we thought we were better than them and we came out flat and you just have to be careful of that.”

Another unsung factor in North’s victory came on special teams, with senior kickers Dionard Toplana and Toby Brown Jr. combining to not only drill home all seven extra point attempts, but also pin back the Tomahawks on or behind their own 20 on four of their six first-half drives.

“It just forced us to try and go 80 yards. Especially as a high school team, it’s a challenge consistently for them to be able to put you in a hole pretty much every time they score,” said Merrimack Head Coach Kip Jackson. “They play pretty good complimentary football that way. They score quickly on offense and then they put you on the 20 and now you’re trying to dig out of that hole and trying to get back into the game.”

Merrimack will seek to rebound in a 2 p.m. matchup next Saturday against Goffstown while the Bishop Guertin showdown at Stellos Stadium next Friday could prove to decide who gets the regular season top spot in the NHIAA Division I West as North will seek to keep its undefeated record intact.