Kyle Maynard threw for three touchdowns and Nick Bevilacqua rushed for two more, leading Enfield High School to a 50-16 victory over Sport and Medical Sciences Academy/University in Pequot Conference football action Thursday in Enfield.
In the season finale on Thanksgiving morning, the Raiders honored two dozen senior players, band members and cheerleaders prior to the game. Six of those seniors crossed the goal line during the contest.
Mike Crowley got things started with a 48-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown just over a minute into the game. The Raiders then put the game nearly out of reach with 14 points in a span of 14 seconds.
Bevilacqua scored on a 14-yard run to make it 14-0, then Enfield recovered Anthony Trotta's onsides kick at their own 48. On the next play from scrimmage, Maynard fired a 52-yard scoring strike to Sean Gill to give the Raiders a 21-0 margin.
In the second quarter, Bevilacqua scored his second touchdown on a 1-yard plunge, then Shaq Jessop bulled over from two yards out to provide Enfield a 35-0 lead at intermission.
Maynard connected with Ethan Bartlett on a 7-yard scoring pass late in the third quarter. In the final period, Nick Ferguson broke off a 36-yard touchdown run, sandwiched between a pair of scoring rushes by SMSA/University's Kadeen Johnson.
"Up front we played really good, and it was nice that we were able to run the ball," Enfield head coach Jay Gaucher said. "Our offensive line really stepped up, and all of our seniors contributed today."
Crowley and SMSA's Wilfredo Alicea were named the game's outstanding players, as selected by the opposing coaches.
Prior to the game, Enfield's Kyle Dabrow received the Bill Ackerman Award, presented to Enfield's outstanding lineman in memory of a former Raider player who was one of the nine victims of the Hartford Distributors mass murder in 2010.
Enfield snapped a three-game losing streak to finish the season with a .500 record (5-5). SMSA/University finished at 3-7.