DOVER-FOXCROFT – The Orono Red Riots entered Week 4 of the high school football season as the LTC Class C’s statistical leader in total offense, while the Foxcroft Academy Ponies were ranked No. 1 in total defense.

But when the conference’s two remaining undefeated teams squared off Friday night, Foxcroft was clearly the best in both categories.

Six different Foxcroft running backs combined for 345 rushing yards and five touchdowns, while the Ponies’ swarming defense held Orono 263 yards under its season average while rolling to a 34-0 Homecoming victory at Oakes Field.

“They’re a heck of a football team,” said Orono coach Bob Sinclair. “They beat us in all facets of the game tonight, no question. We were beaten by a much better team. They’re big, fast, strong. They run to the ball well. They’re in a whole different place than we are right now.”

The win – Foxcroft’s 35th straight at home, a streak dating back to 2001 – leaves the two-time defending Eastern Maine champions alone atop the LTC standings at 4-0, while Orono drops to 3-1.

Senior halfback Shane Adkins led Foxcroft’s ground game with 114 yards and a touchdown on just eight carries, while junior fullback Wade Witham added 80 yards on six tries, including an 81-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter as the Ponies built a 19-0 halftime lead.

Senior fullback Ben Provost (8-59) and sophomore halfback Ian Champeon (7-52) each added a touchdown run, as did senior halfback Jerod Rideout (7-27).

“We feel very fortunate that we have a wide range of kids we can go to,” said Foxcroft coach Paul Withee, “and obviously they’re running extremely well.”

Foxcroft’s defense limited Orono, which entered the game averaging 397 yards of total offense in its previous three games, to 134 yards overall and just 90 rushing yards on 38 carries, including just 20 rushing yards after intermission.

Senior end Jon Geiger was among the defensive leaders, sacking Orono quarterback Kash Keezer in the end zone for a third-quarter safety and deflecting a Red Riots’ punt. Evan Worthing and Adam LePrevost each added a sack, while Adkins and Jason Gould each had a pass interception for the Ponies.

“We respected this team very much, and we knew the game was Homecoming, so we came into it really focused, ready to play,” said Geiger.

A 56-yard run by Adkins on Foxcroft’s first play from scrimmage set the Ponies up deep in Orono territory, but a sack of Foxcroft QB Jamie Nason (43 passing yards) by Nigel Kass ended the threat.

Rideout then had a 77-yard punt return for a touchdown negated by a penalty, but it still set up Foxcroft’s first score, a 6-yard run by Champeon with 1:33 left in the opening quarter.

Witham, a 6-foot, 220-pound junior, extended the lead to 12-0 with 7:48 left in the second quarter, popping a quick opener from the Ponies’ 19 up the middle and then down the left sideline, escaping the last Orono tacklers near the Red Riots’ 40 en route to the end zone.

Foxcroft drove 84 yards in nine plays to add a back-breaking touchdown with 1:20 left in the half. Nason kept the ball on third-and-4 for 15 yards and a first down at the FA 40, and subsequent runs of 19 yards by Champeon and 21 yards by Provost helped set up a 14-yard scoring run by Rideout, who used a block by Stetson Bowden to get around the right corner.

Brandon Gourley added the extra-point kick to give FA a 19-0 halftime lead. Adkins opened the second half with a 60-yard kickoff return, and Provost scored from the 1 five plays later as Foxcroft’s lead grew to 26-0.

Geiger recorded his end zone sack of Keezer with 4:48 left in the third, and Adkins added Foxcroft’s final TD on a 20-yard run with 5:09 left in the game.

Keezer completed 6 of 16 passes for 44 yards, while Collin Bates, who began the night as the LTC’s second-leading rusher, was held to 32 yards on 12 carries.

PONIES 34, RED RIOTS 0

Orono 0 0 0 0 – 0

Foxcroft 6 13 9 6 – 34

FA – Champeon 6 run (kick failed)

FA – Witham 81 run (pass failed)

FA – Rideout 14 run (Gourley kick)

FA – Provost 1 run (Gourley kick)

FA – Safety, Keezer tackled by Geiger in end zone

FA – Adkins 20 run (rush failed)

Orono Foxcroft

First downs 10 15

Rushing att.-yards 38-90 43-345

Passing comp.-att. 6-18 2-9

Passing yards 44 43

Total yards 134 388

Punts-avg. 6-20.2 2-27.5

Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-2

Intercepted by 0 2

Penalties-yards 2-10 4-35

Rushing

Orono: Keezer 11-32, Bates 12-32, Perry 5-10, McAlinden 1-7, Dana 2-5, Stout 2-3, Leek 2-2, Levasseur 1-0, Goudreau 2-(minus-1); Foxcroft: Adkins 8-114, Witham 6-80, Provost 8-59, Champeon 7-52, Rideout 7-27, Nason 5-13, Conroy 1-0, E. Whittemore 1-0

Passing

Orono: Keezer 6-16-1-44, Doughty 0-2-1-0; Foxcroft: Nason 2-8-0-43, Stroud 0-1-0-0

Receiving

Orono: Dwyer 5-45, Bates 1-(minus-1); Foxcroft: Champeon 1-23, Bowden 1-20

A-850 (est.)