By Richard L. Gaw
Staff Writer

Given the persistent, reddish cloud caused by the parched natural turf at Oxford High School’s playing field last Friday night, the Ches-Mont football game between the Hornets and Kennett Blue Demons had a “ten yards and a cloud of dust” feeling to it.

Through the mist, however, there was a gut-it-out test of wills between two good teams in a game that was not decided until its final seconds.

Kennett quarterback Garrett McCracken’s pass to Joalex Carabajal with 2:11 left in the game contributed to a game-winning drive that ended with a less-then one-yard touchdown plunge by McCracken with 37 seconds left that gave Kennett a come-from behind 25-21 victory and extended its winning streak to five games.

Kennett put an immediate dent on Oxford’s Senior Night festivities with an opening touchdown drive courtesy of running back Aidan Ritch who, coming off a 162-yard performance a week ago, continued his rushing prowess with a 40-yard run that gave the Blue Demons a 6-0 lead with 10:11 remaining in the first quarter.

Oxford, led by quarterback Aiden Kane, marched right back on the next set of downs with a 12-snap, 74-yard touchdown drive that concluded with a ten-yard rush by running back Braden Hunt with 3:25 left in the first quarter that jumped the Hornets to a 7-6 lead.

McCracken then engineered a 45-yard touchdown drive that began with three runs, a pass to Ian Guyer that moved the ball to the four-yard line and ended when Guyer grinded his way for a two-yard score with 5:08 left in the first half, giving Kennett a 12-7 lead.

The Blue Demons’ lead was a short one, however, because on the ensuing kickoff, Jalen McClain returned the kick for a 90-yard TD return with 4:55 left in the first half that was followed by a successful two-yard conversion on a pass from Kane to Aidan Edison that gave Oxford a 15-12 lead.

As the clock wound down to the halftime, however, Kennett tacked on another score with a 75-yard drive on a 37-yard McCracken-to-Ritch touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone with 24 seconds remaining that sent the Blue Demons to the locker room with an 18-15 lead.

Playmaker McClain was heard from again in the third quarter, when he blocked a Kennett punt attempt, recovered the loose ball and scampered his way to a 25-yard touchdown with 8:06 left in the quarter that gave Oxford a 21-18 lead as the final quarter began.

After McCracken’s last-minute scoring drive, the Hornets inherited the ball on their 31-yard line with 34 seconds left in the game. On the fist snap, Kane tossed a pass to Jake Patterson who then flipped the ball Nate Winters in a hook-and-ladder play that saw Winters sprint down the sidelines to the Kennett 14-yard line with 22 second left in the game. After two incomplete passes, Kane’s pass in the corner of the end zone was intercepted by defensive back Brian Dougherty with seven seconds left to seal the Blue Demons’ win.

Kennett’s win concluded a 6-3 regular season and a 3-1 record in the Ches-Mont American division, second to Bayard Rustin who wrapped up a 5-0 divisional record. With the loss, Oxford ended its regular season with a 6-4 overall record and finished 1-3 in the Ches-Mont American.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email [email protected].