KENNEBUNK — Add another name to the list of Bonny Eagle High playmakers.
Junior wide receiver Jacob Humphrey caught three touchdown passes and blocked a punt to set up another score Friday night as the Class A Scots beat Kennebunk, a strong Class B team, 42-21.
Humphrey, who established himself as a standout in basketball and baseball as a sophomore, is playing football for the first time since he was in sixth grade.
“I love all these guys, they’re all from basketball, and Coach (Kevin) Cooper and all the coaching staff, they’re amazing,” Humphrey said. “I love all of them.”
Humphrey’s first two scores were a pair of nearly identical sliding 20-yard catches in the end zone on passes across the middle from Keegan Meredith (9 of 13, 143 yards) that produced a 14-0 lead with 3:20 left in the first quarter.
“He had so much time in the pocket to see all of us, so it’s got to be the offensive line,” Humphrey said. “Keegan does a great job finding the open guy, and the O-line does the rest, protecting him.”
Humphrey finished with seven catches for 125 yards. The Scots also had their ground game going. Nate Ferris ran with authority and gained 175 yards on 14 carries. Zach Maturo had 101 yards, with second-half touchdown of 19 and 30 yards. Meredith chipped in 37 yards on the ground.
Bonny Eagle improved to 3-0, behind an offense that racked up 456 yards despite three turnovers.
“We think we have a lot of great offensive weapons, so we expect to put points on the board. We expect to move the ball. We did that tonight,” said Cooper. “Other than the turnovers, I thought we played great.”
Humphrey’s punt block set up the Scots in a first-and-goal situation. After a delay of game penalty, Nate Ferris produced a punishing 14-yard touchdown run, which featured a stiff arm to put one Kennebunk tackler on the turf and then a collision at the 1, where Ferris knocked the tackler backward and went into the end zone standing up. Cam MacDonald added the third of his six extra-points for a 21-0 lead that the Scots took to halftime.
“I saw (the defender) turned around and he wasn’t ready for me, and I had a full head of steam, so I just lowered my shoulder and got in,” Ferris said.
Kennebunk is now 2-1. The Rams scored on three solid drives in the second half, when they gained 229 of their 307 total yards and forced the Scots to play their starters the full 48 minutes. Ryan Connors scored on a 5-yard run and an 11-yard pass from Tommy Lazos. Lazos added a 1-yard sneak. Sophomore fullback David York rushed for 100 yards.
“Any time you’re playing a good team, it’s a great experience,” said Kennebunk Coach Joe Rafferty. “I welcome the opportunities.”
Kennebunk returns to the Class B ranks next week against Portland. Bonny Eagle, which was coming off a tough, full-game effort in beating Scarborough, has Oxford Hills and then its annual grudge match with Thornton Academy.
“We want to play good teams every week, because the only way to get better is to play good teams,” Cooper said.
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