ORONO- Richie Watson scored four rushing touchdowns, and Logan Fitzgerald also got into the endzone three times as Orono football picked up their first win of the season with a 67-28 victory over Bucksport in a LTC 8-man small school matchup on Friday night.
Watson set the tone for the Red Riots offense, as he took the first play from scrimmage 48-yards for a touchdown just 10 seconds into the game. Eli Schaff blocked a punt on the first possession for the Golden Bucks, leading to another rushing score for Richie of 20 yards. Cooper Brown on the 3-yard quarterback keeper got in for six later in the first quarter, and the rout was on. Watson had two more touchdowns in the second quarter, the second of which was on the final play of the first half. After a 41-yard Orono field goal attempt was blocked, Watson was in the right spot at the right time scooping it up and scampering 39 yards to pay dirt to increase his teams lead to 46-6. Richie was named the Dirigo Nutrition Player of the Game.
The three touchdowns from Fitzgerald came on passes from Brown of 47 and 49 yards, and he also scored on a short run in the third quarter as Orono improved to 1-3. Sophomore Keegan Day had the other Red Riots touchdown on a 48-yard run late in the game. Nick DeBeck scored three times on the ground for Bucksport in the loss. His TDs were 29, 35, and 93 yards. Eli Beaulieu also got into the endzone for the Bucks on a 14-yard run during running time in the final minutes. Orono is back in action next Friday night when they host Spruce Mountain at 6 p.m., while Bucksport (2-2) has a bye week.
