Saturday was a historic day for Mount Desert Island football, as the No. 3 Trojans dominated the No. 2 Greely Rangers 28-0 to win their first ever football state championship.
The Trojans’ victory in the 8-player Large title game capped a 9-1 season. It was a well-balanced effort, with MDI scoring touchdowns on the ground, in the air and on defense.
“We just have athletes, man,” senior quarterback Spencer Laurendeau said. “Everyone of us contributes. It doesn’t matter whose hands the ball is in.”
Greely finished the season 6-4, after going winless last year in its first active football season since 2018.
MDI broke it open less than five minutes into the third quarter, scoring twice. First, senior quarterback Spencer Laurendeau aired out a 38-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Cal Hodgdon, and just a few plays later junior Evan MacKenzie returned a Greely fumble for a 17-yard touchdown.
The run-first Trojans turned to their passing game only a few times on Saturday, but cashed in on it when they did.
In the second quarter, the Trojans caught the Rangers lacking with a 29-yard flea-flicker from senior running back Jacob Shields to junior wideout Jarron Biekert. Shields actually underthrew Biekert in the end zone, but Biekert miraculously held on after getting pressured by the oncoming Ranger defender and nearly dropping the pass.
“It felt like slow motion, honestly,” Biekert said. “It hit my hands, I bobbled it a little bit, and I just had to bring it in.”
Biekert’s touchdown capped off an impressive 79-yard Trojan drive in the dying minutes before halftime. His circus catch sent the MDI faithful into a frenzy.
On the ground, workhorse Laurendeau punched in MDI’s first touchdown from one-yard out halfway through the first quarter. The senior ran for 138 yards on 24 carries on Saturday, and 172 yards (plus 4 TDs) on 44 carries against No. 1 Camden Hills in last week’s North regional final.
Laurendeau believed his team’s historic championship run came down to their tight-knit nature, preparation, and desire.
“We’ve come together as a family — we treat each other like brothers, not just on the field,” Laurendeau said. “We lost to Waterville last year [as the No. 1 seed], and Coach Shields reminded us all year how much we didn’t like that feeling. We all know how much this community wanted it.”
