Football: York passes big test, picks apart Wells

YORK — York High made a statement Friday night with a 48-27 football win against Wells.

Make that several statements: The Wildcats’ pass offense is lethal; their interior defense can bang with one of the top rushing attacks in Maine; and their small and young roster of 31 players (with just four seniors) is deep enough to be a serious contender in the Class C South playoffs. York finished the regular season with a 7-1 record and earned the No. 2 playoff seed behind undefeated Leavitt.

“The kids really paid attention, they were really focused. They knew how big a game this was,” said York Coach Matt Nelson. “Two 6-1 teams going at it.”

York was in control throughout against Wells (6-2), which will be the No. 3 seed. Junior quarterback Teagan Hynes dissected the Wells defense with pinpoint passing to a variety of targets, completing 18 of 25 passes for 384 yards and five touchdowns – with 370 yards and four scores coming in the first half as York built a 35-14.

Just two weeks ago, Wells had a 33-game winning streak. But the Warriors were unable to stop York’s passing game.

“I expect our offense to score this many points every game,” Hynes said. “We have too many specialties, too many good players to not score. It doesn’t matter the team we’re facing, I expect to put up a lot of points in every game.”

Hynes had his team up 14-0 midway through the first quarter. He connected with Riley Linn for 52 yards on the first drive to set up a 10-yard pass to Evan Bourgoine, then had a 39-yard completion to Bourgoine that led to a 9-yard touchdown run by Hynes.

“It was big getting out ahead, but also once we got ahead to keep staying ahead,” Hynes said. “We stayed in it the whole game, and that scoreboard shows what happens when you stay in it the whole game.”

After Wells’ first touchdown, Hynes followed with two more TD passes, a 2-yarder to Bourgoine and a 58-yard strike to Linn for a 28-7 lead.

Payton MacKay burrowed in from a yard for Wells’ second touchdown, but York immediately answered when Hayden Henriksen took a quick pass 58 yards for a touchdown.

York’s ability to respond showed again in the second half. MacKay busted off Wells’ only run of over 20 yards when he scored on a 40-yard sweep, cutting the lead to 35-21.

Less than three minutes later, York’s lead was 48-21. Linn (five catches, 132 yards) scored on a 14-yard pass, and 24 seconds later, Bourgoine returned an interception 39 yards for the Wildcats’ final touchdown.

Wells rushed for 328 yards on 67 carries (the Warriors did not complete a pass), but the yards came hard. York linemen Aidan Martin, Will Orso and Chris Fletcher, with some relief from Matt Charpentier, often hit MacKay (34 carries, 172 yards, 3 TDs) and fullbacks Matt Tufts (16 carries, 100 yards) and Jonah Potter (15 carries, 57 yards) at or near the line of scrimmage. The rest of the defense, led by linebackers Connor Daley and Liam Clayton, rallied well to insure the ball carriers went to the ground.

If both teams win in the regional quarterfinals, they would play at York in the semifinals.

“They have a good offense and we just couldn’t stop it,” Wells Coach Tim Roche said. “We’ll work our (butts) off the next two weeks, and hopefully we’ll have the opportunity to try again.”

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