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BIDDEDFORD – Jamie Cook did not want to end one of the best weeks of his life on a sour note. He made sure he didn’t have to.
Cook quarterbacked the West to two fourth-quarter scoring drives to pull out a come-from-behind 31-18 victory over the East in the 5th annual Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl Classic at Waterhouse Field here Saturday night.
The recently-graduated Kennebunk High School star recorded 61 yards passing, 59 yards rushing, kicked a 35-yard field goal and two extra points, and rushed for a 2-point conversion to lead the West to its fifth straight victory.
For the East, it was another year of “just-missed” heartache after grabbing the lead and momentum early on Chris Horr’s 97-yard game-opening kickoff return for a touchdown.
“This was one of the best weeks of my life, and I didn’t want it to end on a sour note,” said Cook, who is headed for Penn State and a future in track and field.
“We made some adjustments at halftime and tried to capitalize on our speed,” Cook added. “The East is bigger than us, but I thought we were quicker. We played smarter. Everybody got pumped up and started executing.”
Especially in the final 30 minutes.
Behind workhorse Troy Kyajohnian’s 67 yards in the second half, the West pounded the ball down the East’s throat, mixing slants and dives with plenty of tosses and options.
Cook had his own number called on a key fourth-down in the fourth quarter. Trailing 18-16 with 6:09 to play, the West faced a fourth-and-eight on the East-35.
Cook faked a handoff and rolled to his right for a 14-yard gain and a first down. Kyajohnian went off end four plays later, broke outside, and scored from seven yards out to put the West ahead to stay with 4:35 left.
“They told me to run it,” said Cook of the key play. “It was easy. It was open most of the night. I had worked all week on selling the fake. That’s the key to the play because, basically, it’s just a bootleg.”
Cook’s ability had impressed the West coaches all week.
“He’s the kind of kid that’s just fun to watch,” said West head coach Dick Mynahan. “He’s make athletic moves that you just wouldn’t expect. We expected him to do a few things out here for us and he didn’t disappoint. He’s a born leader and he loves to play football.”
The West blew the game open after the East went out in four plays, including a faked punt attempt on a fourth-and-long from their own 17.
Kyajohnian, who played for Lewiston High, scored on a four-yard run to cap the scoring.
Cook, the West choice as MVP, threw plenty of credit to the West’s defense that limited the East to 99 total yards in the second half – including 66 on one play.
“The defense was great,” Cook said. “They killed us all week in practice. I knew if we had a tough time against them, the East would, too.”
Billy Cole, a linebacker from Lawrence High, was the East’s MVP.
The first three quarters featured key plays by both sides starting with the opening kickoff.
Horr, a Brewer High backfield standout last fall, caught the kickoff on his own 3-yard line and headed straight up the field.
“All of a sudden I saw this wall of blue (uniforms), so I broke to the outside,” Horr said. “Buddy Webb threw a key block and there was no containment. I dreamt about this last night, only it was a 100-yarder. I told the guys on my team about it. I was hoping he’d kick it to me again.”
Cook answered the East’s score later in the first quarter, sneaking in from two yards out with 3:51 left. Cook also scrambled for a 22-yard gain on a third-and-16 situation during the drive.
Wells High’s Dan Bothwell then picked off a Kevin Thurston pass and returned it 32 yards for a TD, giving the West a 13-6 lead.
Later in the quarter, the East’s Tim Sullivan picked off a pass to help set up a 29-yard TD run by Fitzpatrick Trophy winner Mike Hamel of Waterville.
Cook kicked a 35-yard field goal in the third, putting the West up 16-12, but the East bounced back immediately when QB Mark Hachey fired a safety pass to Hamel, who went up the left sideline and cut back inside for a 66-yard TD.
Once the fourth quarter began, however, Cook was ready to lead the West to yet another victory.
West 31, East 18
East 6 6 6 0 -18
West 6 7 3 15 -31
East – Horr 97 kickoff return (rush failed)
West – Cook 2 run (pass failed)
West – Bothwell 32 interception return (Cook kick)
East – Hamel 29 run (rush failed)
West – Cook 35 field goal
East – Hamel 66 pass from Hachey (pass failed)
West – Kyajohnian 7 run (Cook rush)
West – Kyajohnian 7 run (Cook kick)
East West First downs 6 15 Rushing: att. – yards 32-57 52-172 Passing: att. – comp. 5-14 6-13 Yards passing 127 71 Total yards 184 243 Intercepted by 1 1 Punts – average 4-18.7 2-16.5 Fumbles – lost 3-2 0-0 Penalties – yards 3-22 3-21
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – East: Hamel 8-40, Pelleriti 10-25, Horr 4-16, Roy 2-4, Terrill 1-0, Thurston 3-(minus 11), Hachey 4-(minus 17); West: Kyajohnian 16-64, Cook 12-59, Grenier 5-19, Polkey 7-19, Simmons 8-12, Bothwell 1-0, Anderson 3-(minus 1).
PASSING – East: Hachey 3-5-0-86, Horr 1-2-0-30, Thurston 1-5-1-11, Kenny 0-2-0-0. West: Cook 5-12-1-61, Anderson 1-1-0-10,
RECEIVING – East: Hamel 2-77, Hachey 1-30, Bowden 2-20; West: Ecker 3-33, Grenier 1-33, McDaniel 1-13, Kyajohnian 1-12.
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