Class C South football: Cape Elizabeth storms out ahead of York, cruises to 41-6 win
CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine — Slow starts seldom turn out good, and that was the case Monday in the rain as the No. 5 York High School football team fell behind early en route to a convincing 41-6 loss at No. 4 Cape Elizabeth in the first round of the Class C South playoffs.
The Wildcats had lost to Cape (3-6) here during the regular season, 30-27.
Cape Elizabeth's Mike Foley broke loose for touchdown runs of 44 and 37 yards in the first 4 minutes and 10 seconds, and Danny Gray added a 5-yard score that made it 22-0 for the Capers with 2:58 to play in the first quarter.
It proved too much for the Wildcats to come back from. Cape now plays in the regional semis at No. 1 and unbeaten defending state champion Leavitt.
“Hats off to Cape. Cape came to play today,” York coach Matt Nelson said. “Their players played really well. They played tough. They’re a physical team. It’s hard to win when you don’t tackle. Tackling has always been a focus in practice. Sometimes it doesn’t translate (to the game). We just couldn’t get out of our own way all day. We just didn’t make enough plays today."
York finished the season at 2-7, losing five of its final six games of the season.
"I’m proud of these young men," Nelson said. "I’m happy with how they grew.”
York senior back Brody Gullison got his team on the board at 6:19 of the second quarter with a 53-yard scamper down the right sideline. The PAT was blocked.
York had a chance to close the gap even further when it recovered a Cape fumble on the Cape 28. The Wildcats could do nothing with the good field position, turning the ball over on downs on the 20.
Cape put the game away with the next possession, an 80-yard drive that culminated with a 34-yard scoring strike from quarterback Brady Inman to Logan McVeigh to widen the lead to 29-6 at the break.
The Capers added two more touchdowns in the second half, a 20-yard run by Foley for his third touchdown of the night, and McVeigh’s 16-yard jaunt at 7:36 of the fourth. Foley ended with 165 rushing yards on eight carries and three touchdowns.
Gullison had a solid night for the Wildcats with 12 carries for 103 yards and a touchdown. Three York starters went down to injury during the game.
Capers capitalize on early key moments
Cape’s burst out of the gate was the difference in the game. Their ability to score three TDs in nine minutes was too much to overcome. They made it look easy.
Foley’s first two TD runs were made with almost no contact from York’s defense. The Wildcats also hurt themselves by going three-and-out on their first two possessions.
Before Gullison scored York’s only TD, they had a chance to get into the end zone earlier but a pass by freshman quarterback Alexander Taylor hit off a receiver’s hands inside the 10. It deflected right to Cape’s McVeigh at the 4, and he returned it to the York 40.
York stopped the Capers there and then scored on Gullison’s big run to close the gap to 22-6. But after recovering a fumble on the Cape 28, the Wildcats were unable to capitalize and had to give the ball up on downs. A Cape scoring pass play put the game out of reach before halftime.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: York football falls to Cape Elizabeth in Class C South playoffs
