Waterville quarterback Liam Von Oesen is knocked out of bounds by Adon Tappen, left, and Gabe Aucoin of Morse during the eight-man Large School North final Saturday in Waterville. Von Oesen led the Purple Panthers to a 22-20 win. Michael G. Seamans/Morning Sentinel
WATERVILLE — Liam Von Oesen ran 30 times for 194 yards and added 148 yards through the air, and Dustan Hunter returned a kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter as top-seeded Waterville defeated No. 2 Morse 22-20 in the eight-man Large School North final Saturday.
Waterville (7-1) will play for the state championship next Saturday against Cheverus (7-0) at Portland’s Fitzpatrick Stadium.
“It feels amazing to win a game like this one, but our job isn’t done,” said Hunter, a freshman. “This was a full team effort. We executed in all three phases of the game.”
After Gabe Aucoin rushed for his third touchdown to give Morse (6-3) a 20-14 lead with 8:59 remaining, Hunter’s kickoff return tied the game, and the Purple Panthers regained the lead with a 2-point conversion.
“I saw a hole and went for it,” said Hunter. “It was a big play. I had my guys blocking downfield and I just found the open space.”
Aucoin rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries to pace the Shipbuilders. His touchdowns came on runs of 9, 43 and 5 yards. He also picked off a Von Oesen pass inside Morse’s 5-yard line in the third quarter.
Morse quarterback Josh ter Mors rushed for 54 yards on 11 carries but was 0 for 6 passing.
“I told them I’m proud of them and that I love them,” said Morse Coach Jason Darling. “We fell short of our ultimate goal, and that’s going to sting in the moment, but when we reflect on the season, I think we’ll remember the season we had for a long time. It was a great year.”
FRIDAY’S GAMES
SCARBOROUGH 40, BANGOR 14: Sam Rumelhart passed for three touchdowns, leading the fifth-seeded Red Storm (5-3) to a Class A quarterfinal win over the fourth-seeded Rams (7-3) in Bangor.
Rumelhart completed 10 of 13 passes. He connected with Ryan Kelly for scores of 37 and 50 yards and threw a 21-yard TD pass to Brady Clough. Clough also caught a 5-yard scoring pass from Jayden Flaker, who added a 9-yard touchdown run. Charlie Murray rushed for 95 yards and a touchdown.
Scarborough will face top-seeded Thornton Academy in the semifinals.
BONNY EAGLE 42, SANFORD 14: Zac Oya and Nick Klein each rushed for two touchdowns, and Terrell Edwards threw a pair of TD passes to Aidan Walcott as the third-seeded Scots (6-3) defeated the No. 6 Spartans (3-5) in a Class A quarterfinal in Standish.
Edwards led the Scots with 78 yards rushing on 14 carries, and also completed 6 of 10 passes for 150 yards. Oya finished with 76 yards on 13 carries.
Sanford quarterback Jake Beninati was 7 of 14 for 86 yards and a touchdown – a 31-yard pass to Cam Suhy, who gained 76 yards on eight carries. Jordan Bissonnette scored Sanford’s other touchdown on a 7-yard run.
Bonny Eagle advances to face No. 2 Oxford Hills in the semifinals.
– Eli Canfield of the Times Record contributed to this report.
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