STANDISH — Coming from behind isn’t something Oxford Hills has had to do much in recent seasons. On Friday night at Bonny Eagle, the defending Class A champion Vikings showed they can still rally when they have to.
After falling behind by two touchdowns late in the first half, Oxford Hills tied the game in the fourth quarter, then won it in overtime, taking a 21-14 victory in a battle of Class A contenders.
Oxford Hills improved to 4-2 and snapped a two-game losing streak. Bonny Eagle is now 3-3.
The Vikings got the ball first in overtime and took the lead on Jacob Carson’s 2-yard run on third down.
Bonny Eagle’s chance to tie came down to fourth-and-goal from the 8. Quarterback Terrell Edwards scrambled to avoid a sack, but his pass went through the end zone incomplete, setting off a Vikings celebration.
Oxford Hills converted a fourth down of its own to tie the game with 10:24 left in the fourth. On fourth-and-4 at the Scots 24, Hunter Tardiff caught a short swing pass in the left flat from Brady Truman, evaded a pair of tacklers and ran for the score, tying the game at 14-14.
Both teams had chances to take the lead late in the fourth. Bonny Eagle saw a drive end with a turnover at the Vikings 6 with 4:47 left. Oxford Hills then drove to the Bonny Eagle 42 before fumbling the ball back to the Scots with 1:04 remaining.
Early, this game was all Bonny Eagle.
The Scots took the opening kickoff and methodically marched down the field. They used five and a minutes and nine plays to go 68 yards, scoring on a 3-yard keeper by Edwards (137 yards on 23 carries) around the left corner.
Late in the second quarter, the teams traded touchdowns in a span of 35 seconds. First, the Scors capitalized on Kyle Blaney’s interception at the Vikings 31, scoring two plays later when Jayden Doughty caught a 25-yard pass from Edwards.
Oxford Hills matched that with a two-play scoring drive. First, Braden Murch grabbed a tipped Truman pass and went 47 yards. On the next play, Truman hit Logan Spencer in the left corner of the end zone, cutting Bonny Eagle’s lead to 14-7 with 1:12 left in the half.
The Vikings wasted a prime scoring chance in the first quarter, with first-and-goal at the 3. A pair of offsides penalties pushed the Vikings back to the 12, and the drive ended when Kaden Sullivan sacked Truman on fourth down at the 15.
Tardiff ran for 101 yards on 16 carries, while Truman threw for 187 yards. Kaden Sullivan led Bonny Eagle’s defense with three sacks and a forced fumble.
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