KENNEBUNK – When Jonah Barstow rumbled 43 yards for a Kennebunk High touchdown with 9:44 left in the fourth quarter, it gave the Class B South leading Rams a seemingly secure 22-point lead
Instead, old rival Marshwood, which was trying to secure the second seed with a win and a first-round bye, woke up. The Hawks scored 21 unanswered points – including 15 in a 12-second span – and had a chance to win the game with a two-point conversion with 18.5 seconds left.
Kennebunk (7-1) got a play from its defense when it needed it most, stopping hard-running Landon Waterman a foot short on the conversion run to preserve a wild 41-40 win Friday night.
Marshwood slipped to 4-4 and will likely finish either third or fourth in Class B South. Kennebunk secured its first-round bye one week after losing to South Portland, 27-6.
“We had to show up since last week’s underperformance and I think we did, especially in the first half,” said Barstow, who rushed for 229 yards and three scores on 23 carries. “I think we got a little too confident there and it’s Marshwood, you know they’re always going to put up a good fight against us. It’s always a crazy game to end the season but on that two-point conversion our boys finally pulled through.”
Barstow’s third touchdown, an explosive run up the middle, had been a quick rebuttal to a nifty 28-yard run by Marshwood senior Dylan Grassi early in the fourth quarter.
Marshwood, which had gotten little from its pass offense, began to open things up and quarterback Tyler Hussey (8 of 13, 68 yards, two TDs) completed three passes on the next drive, including a 12-yarder to the back of the end zone for the score to Benjamin Santisi. Ryan Essex added a two-point conversion run.
On the kickoff, Kennebunk had a lone deep man on the right hash. Hawks kicker Justin Farnham dropped a kick to the opposite side around the 30. After multiple players failed to cover the ball, Marshwood freshman Greg Castoras recovered at the 11. On the next play, Grassi ripped through the middle of Kennebunk’s defense for the score, cutting the lead to 41-34 with Brady Isabelle’s point-after kick. Fifteen points in 12 seconds.
“Credit to Marshwood. Their kids competed their tails off,” said Kennebunk Coach Keith Noel. “We’ve got to keep our focus a little bit more and at times we didn’t keep our focus and we were very fortunate at the end to get that stop.”
Kennebunk was stopped without a first down for the second time in the game and forced to punt. The Hawks worked the clock and on second and goal from the 1 with no timeouts and 23 seconds to play, Hussey hit Essex on a wide-open pass in the flat.
“I mean we were down by three scores going into the fourth and we definitely fought until the last play,” said Grassi, who rushed for 97 yards on nine carries. “It came down to one play, literally. We pulled everything together in the fourth and we rallied and came one play short. We’ll see them again.”
The game started with the two teams trading touchdowns on their first two possessions. Kennebunk got the first defensive stop of the game and took a 21-13 lead into the half when Brady Stone scored on a 3-yard run with 14 seconds to play.
Moose Keys quickly increased the lead to 28-13 (with the fourth of five Barstow PATs) with a 48-yard run on the first play from scrimmage in the second half. Kennebunk got a quick defensive stop and the powerful 6-1, 205-pound Barstow scored standing up on a 22-yard burst up the middle, giving Kennebunk its first 22-point lead.
“It’s too bad we didn’t find life a little earlier, maybe in the third quarter,” said Marshwood Coach Alex Rotsko.
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