Stephen Decatur football beats Kent Island in battle of Bayside undefeated teams
The Stephen Decatur football team took the trip to Stevensville Friday to face Kent Island and left with its undefeated record still intact, as Decatur grabbed a 33-15 winto hand the Buccaneers their first loss of the season.
The Seahawks (6-0) jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter with their usual explosive offensive leading the way. Big plays and touchdowns from Careen Bolden and Jamien Purnell put them up early, but Kent Island (5-1) fought back to make it a 17-12 game at halftime, courtesy of touchdowns from Tucker Claxton and Shane Bogardus.
Decatur took full control of the game in the second half, stifling Kent Island's offense, only allowing one field goal in the final two quarters. Two timely touchdowns, a fourth-down red zone touchdown catch from Gavin Solito and a deep touchdown catch from Bolden, ended the game and sent the Seahawks back to Berlin with their sixth win. Star quarterback Brycen Coleman ended the day with three passing touchdowns, two to Bolden and one to Solito, and Purnell put up a rushing TD, while kicker Brogan Eastlack also nailed a deep field goal in the third quarter.
Plays of the Game
There were plenty of candidates for the top play of this game from the Decatur perspective, whether it was the big fourth-down touchdown pass from Coleman to Solito or the forced fumble by the defense that effectively ended the game in the fourth quarter.
But Careen Bolden's two big touchdown catches, the first being a catch-and-run out of the backfield that went for more than 50 yards, and Bolden's second touchdown on a deep pass that put the game on ice in the fourth, stand out as the big plays of the game. Bolden, a newcomer to the Seahawks this year from Seaford, has shown his playmaking abilities in each of their wins so far this season, and it was on full display in the Seahawks' biggest win of the year so far.
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What it means
This was a matchup between two teams that nearly met in the Class 2A State Title game last year, and Decatur walked away with a win in the battle of Bayside titans. This was Decatur's first win over Kent Island since 2008, as the Seahawks continue to rack up impressive firsts and accomplishments under head coach Jake Coleman.
Stephen Decatur is one of two remaining Bayside Conference teams that still has an unblemished record, and they will face the second team, the North Caroline Bulldogs, next week in another big Bayside Conference matchup in Berlin. With a win next week to go with tonight's win, Decatur would be in the driver's seat for a Bayside Conference Championship and the top seed in the Class 2A East Region come playoff time.
What's Next
Stephen Decatur will host North Caroline next Friday night at 6 p.m., while Kent Island will host James M. Bennett at 1 o'clock next Saturday afternoon.
This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Stephen Decatur football beats Kent Island Bayside undefeated teams
