ORONO- Maine Central Institute (MCI) rushed for over 370 yards, including Adam Bertrand and Pedro Matos combining for 316 in leading the Huskies to a 30-13 win over Cape Elizabeth in the Maine Principals’ Association Class C state championship football game played Friday night at the University of Maine.
MCI jumped out quickly as Bertrand went 52 yards into the end zone with 10:10 remaining in the first half.
“I didn’t even know that I could break away like yet,”Adam Bertrand said. “It was surprising to me.”
The Capers responded quickly when Andrew Hartel connected with Jacob Brydson for a 16 yard score. That capped a 10 play/63 yard drive and evened the score at 7.
Bertrand gave the Huskies a lead they wouldn’t give back when he capped off an eight play drive with a one yard score with 12 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
The Capers were able to keep it close thanks to two MCI turnovers in the first half. The second turnover led to a Hartel touchdown pass to Matt Conley. The point after failed and the Huskies kept the 14-13 lead.
It looked like MCI was content with letting Devon Varney attempt a 23 yard field goal late in the first half. Cape called a timeout and MCI decided to take something out of their book that they just put in there this week.
The Huskies lined the majority of their line all the way to the left. They played four on four and last years water boy Ryan Friend looked like a veteran when he connected with Andrew Whitaker for a three yard touchdown. MCI actually did the play twice. Cape Elizabeth was called for a penalty the first attempt, while the second attempt ended up in the hands of Whitaker. The play was something assistant coach Lincoln Robinson saw in a college game. It gave the Huskies a 21-13 halftime lead.
“That was insane. We drew it up earlier this week. It was good to have in our back pocket, pull it out at any time,”Adam Bertrand said. “We weren’t going to run it, but they called a time out and we were like, why not let’s try it? It worked out.”
Friend added, “we actually put it in this week. Coach Robinson saw it in a college game. We put it in the board. We practiced it a few times this week.”
The first half, Bertrand carried the load. The second half, Matos took over, including a 93 yard touchdown run. Matos fumbled in the first half, coach Tom Bertrand didn’t hesitate going back to Matos.
Matos said, “I fumbled at the beginning, they trusted to give me another opportunity.”
Friend made some big plays throughout, including the touchdown pass and a 36 yard connection to Matos that set up Bertrand’s second touchdown. Just one year ago, Friend was the water boy as an eighth grader for the 2016 class D state champions from MCI.
“It is crazy, last year I was on the sidelines as a water boy. It is really nerve racking,”Friend said. “As the season progressed, I got a little more comfortable. I have Adam and Pedro back there with me. They help me out a lot.”
MCI lost to Winslow, MDI, and Cape Elizabeth in the regular season. They defeated Winslow in the regional semifinals and MDI in the regional championship game.
“It is a team effort in every way. I am fortunate to have the coaching staff that I have. We just decided we were going to defy the odds. We had nothing to lose, we were not favored. We had some scores to settle, MCI coach Tom Bertrand said. “We got healthy, we got better, we started to peak. We just buckled down. Good things started to happen.”
Bertrand had 165 yards on 20 carries, Matos had 151 yards on 12 carries, while Seth Bussell had 57 yards on eight carries. The Huskies finished with 422 total yards, while the Capers had 229. MCI finishes the season 8-4 after being 2-3 and 4-4 during the season. Cape Elizabeth finishes the season with a 9-3 record.
