GARDINER — When you have a rivalry that spans over three centuries, the importance of the game speaks for itself.
Gardiner will host Cony at 7 p.m. Friday at Hoch Field in what has become an event both communities look forward to all year.
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“The game in itself is just the most intense game of the year,” Gardiner senior Andrew Doody-Veilleux said. “It’s Gardiner-Cony, it’s a rivalry, it’s been around for a long time.
“We’re all going to make sure we leave everything out on the field. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
The two teams enter the game on different ends of the spectrum. Cony (5-2) has won four games in a row and is looking to lock up a top two seed in the Pine Tree Conference B playoffs, while Gardiner (2-5) has dropped its last three contests and will end its season no matter what happens Friday night.
The Tigers will definitely be the underdogs, but are far better equipped to handle the Rams this year as opposed to last year.
Here is a look at the rivalry:
Last season: Cony 76, Gardiner 14.
All-time series: Cony leads 69-57-10.
Live stream: https://new.livestream.com/accounts/546422/events/3273015
Gardiner players to watch: TB/CB Treavon Horton, TB/CB Tyler Caron, QB Eli Kropp, TE/LB Jake Truman, OL/DL Andrew Doody-Veilleux, RB/LB Brad Weston.
Cony players to watch: WR/LB/KR Tayler Carrier, QB Mitchell Caron, RB/LB Reid Shostak, OL/DL Elias Younes, WR/CB Joel Bennett, WR Kyle Armstrong, WR Anthony Brunelle, DT/OL Elijah Tobey, DE Benaiah Willhoite, DE Dylan Tudeen.
Cony coach Robby Vachon on playing Gardiner: “Gardiner is much-improved from a year ago. They are physical on both sides of the ball. To be successful, we’ll need to protect the football and be solid tackling.”
Gardiner coach Matt Burgess on playing Cony: “Cony has a well-coached offense with talented skill players. Defending the pass and run are equally important. Defensively, they make big plays when they need to. We will need to play mistake-free football to score (against) them.”
Three keys for Cony:
• Share the wealth. Between Carrier, Bennett, Armstrong, Brunelle and Shostak, the Rams have as good of a receiving corps as there is in the conference. Gardiner has been vulnerable against the pass this season and using their full arsenal of weapons will make the Rams tough to stop.
• Gang tackle. Listed at 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds, Weston is not the easiest back to bring down one-on-one. When he has the ball, the Rams will need to meet him with multiple tacklers to bring the bruising back down and slow the Gardiner run game.
• Who’s got Carrier? Last week against Greely, Carrier caught 14 ball for 187 yards and also rushed for a pair of touchdowns. The Rams like to use the four-year starter in a number of ways and being aware of where he is at all times will be paramount for the Tigers.
Three keys for Gardiner:
• Pass defense. Skowhegan quarterback Garrett McSweeney threw for 320 yards and four touchdowns last week against the Tigers and Gardiner will face an even better passing attack in the Rams. If they cannot find a way to disrupt Caron and Cony’s multitude of weapons, the Tigers may be in for a long night.
• Ball security. Turnovers have cost Gardiner dearly at times this year and Cony’s the type of team that can make the Tigers pay for giving up extra possessions. Gardiner’s best chance will be to control the ball and play an error-free game.
• Home-field advantage. Friday night’s crowd figures to be the biggest at Hoch Field this season. Feeding off that energy without playing out of control could be an advantage for the Tigers.
Evan Crawley — 621-5640
ecrawley@mainetoday.com
Twitter: @Evan_Crawley
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