Messalonskee athletic director Tom Hill said he expects to name an interim head football coach this week, and that coach will be in place for Friday’s game at Edward Little High School in Auburn.

“Nothing’s official or settled. No decision has been made at this time,” Hill said on Monday afternoon. “Hopefully by (Tuesday). Definitely by this weekend’s game.”

Former Messalonskee head coach Wes Littlefield resigned on Thursday, following an incident with a player at Wednesday’s practice.

When the Eagles played at Oxford Hills on Friday night, assistant coaches Rob Rodrigue and Chapin LaBelle split the game management duties. Rodrigue ran the offense, while LaBelle ran the defense. Messalonskee won, 41-0, to improve to 4-0.

Hill said the interim head coach will come from the current staff.

“We’re not going outside the existing staff,” Hill said. “We’ll continue to use the coaches we have.”

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One of the highlights of Messalonskee’s 41-0 win at Oxford Hills was senior fullback Jake Stinson’s first career touchdown catch.

On fourth down and 5 from the Oxford Hills 10-yard line, quarterback Josh Woodard took the snap and rolled left, finding a wide open Stinson in the flats. The 5-foot-10, 225-pound Stinson made the catch at about the 6-yard line, then ran over an Oxford Hills defender to get the score with 3 minutes, 36 seconds left in the second quarter.

The touchdown gave the Eagles a 20-0 lead, and after the game, Stinson was thrilled.

“Basically, I was wide open, and I killed the kid going into the end zone,” Stinson said. “It was awesome.”

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Lawrence just keeps rolling along. The Bulldogs are 5-0 and have won 21 consecutive regular-season games.

“I think we executed pretty well at Mt. Ararat (a 53-6 win on Friday),” head coach John Hersom said. “We didn’t punt once. We were in a good offensive flow.”

Lawrence’s schedule is going to get tougher in the second half of the season. The Bulldogs first four opponents are a combined 2-14, while the next five are 14-6, including Brunswick and Messalonskee, both undefeated and tied with Lawrence at the top of the Pine Tree Conference Class A.

“I think it’s time we’ll be challenged a little,” Hersom said.

With each win so far a blowout, Lawrence’s starters have yet to play a full game. Even so, Hersom said he’s not concerned that his team will not be ready when it has to play four tough quarters.

“We feel, in our preparation, we get high intensity reps,” Hersom said. “Even our younger guys are getting used to that.”

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Lawrence hosts Skowhegan (2-2) on Friday. The Indians are one of the top passing teams in the league, and that’s something the Bulldogs haven’t seen much of yet this season.

“We spoke to our team (Monday) about how it’s not just on the shoulders of our secondary. It will take an entire team effort on defense,” Hersom said.

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Nokomis entered the season with playoff goals, but with losses in each of the first three games, the Warriors put themselves in a hole. Coach Haggie Pratt hopes Saturday’s 42-12 win over Old Town was the first step toward a strong second half.

“We’re young. All we’ve got to do is clean up a few mistakes young players make,” Pratt said.

At 1-3, Nokomis may have to go 3-1 down the stretch, but the Warriors a schedule that makes it possible, if they continues to improve. Nokomis hosts Brewer (2-2), before games at Mt. Desert Island (2-2) and Camden Hills (0-4). Nokomis ends the regular season at home against Madison (2-2).

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“I’d like to think we’ll play better next week,” Pratt said.

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Around the state: Brunswick’s Jared Jensen became the first player in the state to run for 1,000 yards this season when he ran for 332 yards in a win over Edward Little on Friday… Since giving up a touchdown to Sanford in the third quarter of the season opener, Cheverus has outscored opponents 161-0. The Stags host Gorham (0-4) on Saturday… There are 15 unbeaten teams heading into this weekend’s games, but by Saturday night, at least three of those teams will have a loss. There are three games this weekend that are matchups of unbeaten teams: Scarborough at Thornton, Orono at Foxcroft, and Maranacook at Dirigo.

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com


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