Football
Wildcats down Warriors, 27-0
By Stan Ross
The York High School Wildcats get ready for their big game Friday night, Oct. 27, where the 'Cats beat Wells 27-scratch. The team advances to the Western Maine Playoffs this Saturday, Nov. 4.
Photo by Sherry DaBiere
YORK - Last Friday night, Oct. 27, the York High School Wildcats (7-2) came out roaring and shut out their archrival Wells Warriors (5-4) in their best performance of the season.
Head Coach Randy Small would say, "We scouted Wells Monday night and felt we could pass against them and we were determined to get off to a fast start."
Jon Jiminez took the opening Wells kickoff and returned it 20 yards to the York 30. Then on the first play from scrimmage sophomore QB Evan Wallace fired a tight spiral over the middle to Alex Blomquist who pulled it in and raced past the Wells safeties for a 70-yard TD. Just 17 seconds had run off the clock when Ryan MacGlashing split the uprights on the point after and York led 7-0.
Wells returned the next kickoff to their 35 before Pat Graham made an open field tackle. Heavy pressure by Tom Ross and Alex Quinn pushed Wells back and they went to the air, but Jiminez broke up the pass and the Warriors were forced to punt. York let the punt roll dead and started from their own 37.
But the Wildcats were stymied by successive penalties and, despite a 15-yard gain on a sweep by Wallace, they were forced to punt. Wells was stopped by an illegal procedure penalty and the solid tackling of Quinn, Eugene Jones and Ross. Wells fourth-down punt went dead on the York 25 yard line. QB Wallace gained five yards on a pass to Ian Bond but York was forced to punt on fourth down. The Warriors long gainer was a 17-yard pass to Kevin Banks and they had a first down on the Wildcats 20 yard line. Then Blomquist intercepted in the end zone and returned it to the York 15. York was aided by a pair of major penalties against Wells and Zach Pruger fought his way for a 14-yard gain and the Wildcats had a first and goal at the Wells four. The Warriors stopped Jiminez on a pair of running attempts, but Wallace went to the air and found Romano in the corner of the end zone for a TD and York led 14-0 with 8:10 remaining in the half.
Wells returned to their 38 before sacks by Zach Wheeler and Quinn forced them to go to the air. A questionable pass interference call gave the Warriors a new first down on the York 38. Then Romano recovered a Wells fumble and the Wildcats had a first down on their own 28. Matt Day helped the cause by recovering a teammate's fumble, but York went three and out. MacGlashing booted a high punt and Wells called for a fair catch on their own 30 yard line. Wells high punt was fielded on the York 34, but a personal foul against Wells gave York the ball at midfield. Wallace passed to Romano on a crossing pattern to pick up 30 yards and York had a first down at the Wells 14 yard line with eight seconds remaining in the half. After an incomplete pass, MacGlashing was called on to try a 30-yard field goal but it hooked left and the half ended with York leading 14-0.
York kicked off to Wells to start the third quarter and they started from their own 28. A 20-yard gain by Coolidge was offset by a 15-yard penalty and the Warriors tried to pass but Romano intercepted for York at the 48 yard line. York went three and out and
Wells took over on their own 32 yard line. Then Coolidge broke away for another 30-yard gain before Blomquist made a saving tackle at the York 33. Jones and Buddy Gauthier combined for a solid stick but York was charged with a personal foul and penalized "half the distance to the goal line."
Wells had a first and goal at the York six yard line but the Wildcat defense stiffened. Ross made the first tackle and Vokey and Gauthier combined for a sack. Then a tackle by Quinn and a stick by Jones and York had shut down Wells and took over on downs.
Jones and Jake Moran would say after the game, "This win over Wells was awesome." Vokey added, "We worked harder and played with more enthusiasm!"
York led by 14 at the time and if Wells had scored it could have been anybody's game.
The Wildcats started from their own seven on a 13-play drive featured by the running of Pruger (an unofficial 60 yards in the game) and a 31-yard pass to Blomquist (two catches for 101 yards) and finally had a first and goal at the Warriors six yard line. Then Pruger found a huge hole off left tackle and went in untouched for the TD to give York a 20-0 lead with 9:31 left in the game. The point after was wide left, but York seemed to be in complete control.
Wells took the next kickoff and started from their own 37-yard line. The York defense was ready and Sunny Sala made one sack and Ross made a solid stick. Then Scott Langenheim picked off an errant pass that was forced by the pressure of defensive lineman Pete Corey. But three plays later, York fumbled and Wells had one more chance. After a solid stop by Langenheim, a tackle by Dan Moran and close pass coverage by Blomquist, Wells was forced to turn the ball over on downs at midfield. York scored the final touchdown on the ground behind the solid running of Quinn, who rumbled up the middle for 25 yards and scored from 17 yards out behind a solid block by Jake Moran. York now led 27-0, but Wells never gave up. They retuned the next kickoff 50 yards before Pat Graham and kicker MacGlashing combined to finally make a TD-saving tackle.
Blomquist intercepted a Wells pass on the York 16 and the Wildcats fans could finally celebrate as York QB Wallace "took a knee" to run off the final seconds.
After the game, when it was learned that York would be seeded third and would face number two seed Cape Elizabeth in the opening round of the playoffs next
Sat., Nov.4., Co-Captains Pruger and Quinn were ready to go.
They said, "We lost to them 14-8 at home but that was our third game of the year. We execute much better now and everybody is healthy!"
York will play Cape Elizabeth this Saturday in South Portland at 1 p.m. in the first round of the Western Maine Playoffs.
