KENNEBUNK — If it wasn’t clear after Ben McCarron’s first interception return for a touchdown that the Greely football team was about to win its first state championship, it was after his second.

Greely, a year removed from being shutout in the eight-man Large School final, hoisted this year’s Gold Ball on Saturday after a commanding 58-20 win over Mt. Ararat.

“There’s no feeling like this,” McCarron said. “We’ve been working so hard for so long. We’re all feeling it. We’re so happy to be here. Now coming out on top, it’s the best feeling. It’s awesome.”

The second-seeded Rangers (9-1) scored on every possession, never lost the lead and forced four turnovers, including three interceptions by McCarron. The senior added a 1-yard touchdown catch from senior quarterback Andrew Padgett on the opening drive.

Padgett left the 2023 championship game, a 28-0 loss to Mt. Desert Island, in the second quarter because of an arm injury. On Saturday, Padgett made an impact with his arm (6 for 8, 72 yards, 3 TDs) and his legs (nine carries, 21 yards, 2 TDs).

Four plays after the opening score, Dash Farrell broke away for a 44-yard touchdown run to put Mt. Ararat (8-3) on the board. But the fourth-seeded Eagles couldn’t stop Greely’s offense. On the Rangers’ next possession, they converted two fourth-down passes, including a 10-yard touchdown from Padgett to sophomore Luke Piper.

Greely converted 5 of 9 third downs was 4 for 4 on fourth down.

“Our game plan was to move the ball around, distribute it to our playmakers, and that’s what we did,” Greely Coach Caleb King said. “Our kids know that we believe in them on fourth down, especially. We’re going to take a shot, we’re going to give them the opportunity to make a play…. We’ll go for it and get it.”

Big plays also came on first down, primarily from senior Wes Piper (team-high 86 yards rushing; one catch for 28 yards; one completion for 14 yards). His 51-yard run set up a 5-yard touchdown by Noah Allen (eight carries, 41 yards) on the first play of the second quarter. On the next drive, Padgett added his own 1-yard sneak after McCarron made his first interception near midfield.

With Farrell (22 carries, 119 yards, 2 TDs) and junior Nick Doughty (21 carries, 93 yards) doing most of the work on the ground, Mt. Ararat drove into the red zone just before halftime, but McCarron ended the half with an 84-yard interception return that gave Greely a 36-6 lead.

“Greely is a good football team, and you know something, our team’s a pretty good team, too. Just today wasn’t our day,” Mt. Ararat Coach Frank True said. “Too many mistakes to overcome when you have a great team like that, but it wasn’t from, like I told those guys, it wasn’t from lack of effort. It wasn’t from lack of giving everything they had out on that field.”

The Eagles’ offense showed some life in the second half, as Farrell scored twice – a 6-yard run and a 7-yard catch.

Greely had an answer each time.

Padgett found wide receiver Benjamin Kyles (four receptions, 102 yards) for a 9-yard toe-tap touchdown at the front pylon to give Greely a 44-12 lead. Padgett’s second touchdown of the day made it 50-20, and McCarron returned an interception 45 yards for the final touchdown.

“For sure one of my best (performances),” McCarron, a linebacker, said about his final high school game. “I usually don’t pick the ball off a lot; obviously I had a lot this game, lot of tackles, but a defense is eight people, and it’s all of us out there. I can’t take all the credit.”

King gave credit to Greely’s senior class and the entire team’s intensity.

“After the first play, the first jitters get out,” King said. “We had a pretty good sense of how this game was going to go. We knew if we started out strong, it’s what we’ve done all year. The one game we didn’t do it was against Camden Hills, and that’s one game we lost at the beginning of the season. We didn’t take care of the ball, we turned the ball over and we played flat. (When) we play with energy, there’s nobody that can beat us.”