READFIELD – There’s not a lot of variety in Maranacook’s offense. The single wing isn’t designed to work that way. It’s all about ball control, power running and just enough subtlety to keep opposing defenses guessing.
The Black Bears got untracked in the second half and by the fourth quarter they had visiting Boothbay on its heels while posting a 27-0 win in their season opener Friday night at the Ricky Gibson Field of Dreams.
Maranacook had a bye last week while the rest of the teams including Boothbay (0-2) played their Class D Southern Division openers.
“It gave us a chance to work on a few things and and put in a couple more plays,” quarterback Kyle Morand said.
Morand, who played fullback the past two seasons, ran like one Friday night, compiling 132 yards on 20 carries and scoring two touchdowns, mostly on runs up the middle. Junior Drew Davis added 84 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries, most of them off tackle, while senior speedster Zach Lacasse gave the Bears an outside game to complement his teammates.
Lacasse finished with 108 yards on 17 carries, many of those tosses to the outside.
“We’re really a good power team and we grind the whole game, Lacasse said. “It really shows in the fourth quarter. We really wear everyone down.”
In all, the Bears amassed 345 yards, all but two of those on the ground, while holding the Seahawks to 53 total yards.The defense did its job. End Ty Smith played well along with a Morand, who at 6-foot-1 and 208 pounds, delivers big hits from the secondary. Brandyn Michaud added a pair of interceptions while Nick Bowie recovered a fumble that killed some Boothbay momentum eaarly in the second half.
“I’ve been telling them all year they’re going to own the fourth quarter, Maranacook coach Joe Emery said. “It turned out that way tonight.”
The Bears turned the ball over twice in the first quarter to end promising drives but they got going in the second following a short Boothbay punt that carried just inside midfield. From there, they nickeled and dimed Seahawks with short runs culminated by Morand’s weaving scoring run for 18 yards out. The senior QB rushed the conversion to make it 8-0.
Lacasse, a 5-7, 155-pound senior, capped a second short drive in the third period with a TD run of eight yards.
“I saw the outside was open,” he said. “They were playing really aggressive in the middle, so I kept my head up and made the cut. We had great blocking all night.”
The game plan took hold in the fourth period as the Seahawks were gassed. Morand scored on a 2-yard run to make it 20-0, then on the next drive he followed a Lacasse sweep of 17 yards with jaunts of 19 and 14 yards on consecutive plays. Davis capped the drive with a 12 yard run and Smith added the kick.
The Black Bears take on Traip Academy in Kittery next week.
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