READFIELD — Friday was senior night for the Maranacook football team at Ricky Gibson Field of Dreams, so it was fitting a senior would lead the way.
Running back Chris Robinson rushed for 171 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Black Bears to a 30-0 win against Telstar in a Class D West game.
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Maranacook (4-3) concludes its regular season next week against Winthrop/Monmouth and could gain home field advantage in the playoffs with a victory. Telstar is 1-6.
The Bears posted an impressive first quarter in which they ran 24 plays to three for the Rebels. Robinson ripped off runs of 18 and 23 yards in the opening drive and nearly capped it with a score, but he was hit at the 1-yard line and fumbled into the end zone where Maranacook freshman Isiah Weston recovered the ball for a touchdown.
Robinson did score on a 2-yard run on the first play of the second period and quarterback Kyle Morand rushed his second conversion to make it 16-0. But the Black Bears went a little flat after that.
“We could have done better on offense, but we played well on defense,” Morand said. “We won though.”
The Rebels picked up the pace in the second quarter and registered three first downs to keep the ball away from the Bears and the defense did a better job stopping Maranacook’s ground attack. The Rebels suited just 21 players for the game, missing two due to illness and another to injury.
“This is the third year of our varsity program,” Telstar coach Tim O’Connor said. “We won last week against Traip and we were looking for one more win between this game and next game (against Sacopee Valley) and a chance to be in the playoffs.”
Maranacook suited just 24 players and were missing three important starters in tackle Josh Aho and linebackers Zach Bessette and Logan Emery. Aho is expected back next week but Emery and Bessette are gone for the season. The Bears lost Bessette when he broke his collar bone last week against Lisbon.
“It’s hard to lose some of our seniors,” Morand said. “But it just motivates us. We play for them.”
After a scoreless third period in which the Bears fumbled the ball away twice, they put it together in the fourth quarter. Weston made his second big play of the game when he returned a punt for 30 yards to the Telstar 40. Robinson scored on the next play as he broke off tackle and ran away from the defense. Sophomore Zach Lacasse wrapped up the scoring with a 14-yard run off tackle that he broke to the outside. Freshman Drew Davis rushed the conversion.
Jake Gibson added 39 rushing yards for Maranacook while A.J. Stephens had 36. Chris Chappie led the Rebels with 72 yards on 13 carries.
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