READFIELD — You have to go back 30 years to find a Maranacook football team as successful as this year’s squad.

The Black Bears won a state title in 1981, then later discontinued the sport until the late 1990s. Since then it’s been a long climb, at least until this season. Friday night, the Black Bears wrapped up a 7-1 regular season with a 26-14 victory over rival Oak Hill.

“I knew we were going to be good, but I didn’t think we’d be this good,” senior Luke Emery said.

Maranacook will host a Class C Campbell Conference playoff game next week against a yet-to-be-determined opponent. Oak Hill finishes at 3-5.

It looked like an easy night for Maranacook after Emery broke the first play from scrimmage for a 65-yard touchdown.

“I wasn’t expecting that at all,” said Emery, who rushed for 145 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries.

Jesse Evans added touchdown runs of 8 and 42 yards as the Black Bears never gave up the lead.

They led 20-7 at the half, but nothing came easily.

“This was an old-fashioned slugfest,” Maranacook coach Joe Emery said. “You have to give it to Oak Hill, they really brought it tonight.”

Oak Hill quarterback Parker Asselin scored on a 1-yard run in the second quarter and junior JoelWells returned a kickoff 85 yards in the fourth period, but it was Cody DePuy who carried the workload for the Raiders. The senior tailback rushed 40 times for 157 hard-fought yards.
Maranacook linebacker Ian Palmer was there to stop him most of the time.

“It’s the senior game, home field, yeah I’m going to be excited,” Palmer said.

The Raiders controlled the ball and the clock, especially in the first half when they ran 45 plays to Maranacook’s 20. But the Black Bears had the big play capability. Asselin’s 1-yard sneak in the second quarter made it 14-7, but the Black Bears came back and scored on three plays.

Quarterback Caleb Castonguay passed to Zach Bessette for 37 yards over the middle of the field on Maranacook’s first play, then found Andrew Lachance for 33 yards in the right corner on the next play to the OH-3. Emery rushed over the line to make it 20-7.

The teams traded possessions in the third quarter as Cody Collingwood stood out for the Raiders on defense and Palmer made hit after hit for the Black Bears.

“He brought his ‘A’ game,” Coach Emery said of Palmer. “Probably Traip was the only game that compared to the hitting in this game.”

Gary Hawkins — 621-5638
ghawkins@centralmaine.com

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