For the Boothbay Seahawks, Monday’s game versus Old Orchard Beach was a tale of two halves. In the first half, it was the best of times. Boothbay scored first on a 26-yard rush by running back Nase Lawless, giving the Seahawks an 8-0 lead.

On defense, the Seahawks kept the Seagulls out of the end zone until the half’s final minute. With 2:26 remaining in the half, Boothbay punter Kayden Ames lost his footing and couldn’t kick the ball. Instead, he ran the ball on fourth and six. OOB tackled him short of the line to gain. Seagulls running back Brayden Mansur received a swing pass in the flat and ran 26 yards into the end zone. 

Earlier in the quarter, Boothbay missed an opportunity for a two-touchdown lead. The Seahawks had first and goal from the 8-yard line, but failed to score on a fourth-and-two.

So even with the mistakes and penalties, Boothbay managed an 8-6 halftime lead. But the second half was truly the worst of times. More mistakes, more penalties and a tired defense struggled to make tackles leading to three more Seagull touchdowns, and OOB beating the Dickens out of Boothbay, 26-8. 

For senior Boothbay running back and cornerback Grant Swope, the first half is how he wants his team to play. “We came out with aggression and wanted to show everybody how good we are. We overcame our early mistakes with perseverance,” he said.  “In the second, we just didn’t finish our blocks or tackles,” he said. 

The Seahawk offensive line was good enough on the team’s lone touchdown drive. Midway in the first quarter, Ames had a 50-yard run which was followed a few plays later by Lawless’ touchdown. For the past two games, Boothbay is direct snapping the ball. This gives the ball handler the option to run or pass and makes the running game less complicated. Boothbay rotates which running back or quarterback receives the snap. “It just makes it easier for our running game. It eliminates the handoffs and the runner can better see the play develop,” Swope said.

On the touchdown, it was Lawless who received the direct snap. “I followed Grant through the hole, and I had one man to beat,” Lawless said.

Later in the second quarter, the Seahawks had a first-and-goal, but was stopped on fourth down at the two. “We didn’t score because the blocking wasn’t there,” Coach Ed Crocker said. “Overall, we had too many penalties. I think 125 total yards in penalties including a touchdown called back, offsides – not jumping offsides, but lining up offsides two or three times. Face masks and spiking the ball, too many missed tackles. You just can’t do that,” he said.

The Monday night game was due to potential thunderstorms threatening the Sept. 25 contest. Boothbay now has three days to prepare for its next opponent Maranacook in Readfield. Maranacook (0-2) is traditionally a challenging opponent for Boothbay. But COVID-19 has resulted in a slow start for the Black Bears, missing practices and games. “They lost to Dirigo which is our only win so far. This is definitely a winnable game for us, but we have to play better because over the years Maranacook has been tough,” Crocker said.