O'Connor's big day leads Easton

EASTON — The message didn’t surface until after the game.

Easton High head football coach Matt Griffith brought up that little note, saying how some Kent Island players had sent an Instagram screen shot to Warrior quarterback Mikey O’Connor earlier this week.

“They sent it to us,” Griffith said. “It said, ‘Come out and support Kent Island. It’s Gavan (Henry), their quarterback, against Kevin’s brother.’”

Well, Kevin O’Connor’s younger brother had quite the night.

Mikey O’Connor rushed for a career-high 250 yards, including three touchdowns, and threw for 146 yards and a pair of TDs Friday, as Easton defeated Kent Island, 43-24, in a battle of Bayside Conference unbeatens.

“He’s a really good player,” Kent Island head coach Zach Davis said of Mikey O’Connor, the third O’Connor brother to play quarterback at Easton. “And they use him well; running and passing. He’s a load.”

O’Connor proved to be just that, scoring on runs of 5, 1 and 4 yards to help the Warriors (4-0) build a 21-10 halftime lead.

That lead stood until late in the third quarter, when Kent Island’s Jaxon Hess raced 25 yards around right end for an apparent touchdown. But that score was erased when the Buccaneers (3-1) were called for holding. Four plays later, Kent Island punted the ball to the Easton 1.

The Warriors pieced together a 10-play, 99-yard drive that ended with O’Connor hitting Chase Raab for a 24-yard touchdown. Dominic Stanco’s point-after boot made it 28-10 with 8:49 remaining in the game.

“That was huge,” said Griffith of Kent Island having a score taken away before the Warriors lengthened their advantage to 18. “We talked about trying to finish. And I think that’s the biggest thing. We’ve focused all week long on execution and finishing the game. And I thought tonight we did.”

Kent Island came right back, as Henry hit Jackson Towers for a 64-yard touchdown pass that — together with Spencer Chappell’s PAT — pulled the Bucs within 28-17 with 6 minutes left.

But Easton sealed the win when it scored two touchdowns in 58 seconds.

O’Connor found a wide-open Diontaye Copper for a 16-yard touchdown pass, then snagged a high snap from center and hit Raab with a two-point conversion pass for a 36-17 lead with 3:31 to go in the game. Kent Island fumbled on its next play from scrimmage, giving the Warriors possession at the Bucs’ 27. Three plays later, Jordan Horsey bulled through the middle for an 11-yard touchdown with 2:23 remaining. Stanco’s PAT made it 43-17.

“We gave up a late touchdown, but besides that, they only gave up three points in the first half,” Griffith said of his defense. “The defense responded late in the second. That was key. Coming out in the third quarter and stopping them. Then we stalled and it was a defensive game most of the (scoreless) third quarter. Then we got back on track offensively and that’s was good to see.”

Easton drove 87 yards on its first possession to take a 7-0 lead on O’Connor’s 5-yard touchdown run around left end.

The Warriors forced a Bucs’ three-and-out, and had moved back into Kent Island territory, when Hess intercepted O’Connor in the left flat and sprinted 55 yards for a touchdown. Chappell’s PAT forged a 7-7 tie with 5:40 left in the first quarter.

The game remained close. O’Connor scored on a 1-yard run, but Stanco’s extra-point attempt was blocked, giving the Warriors a 13-7 lead with under 3 minutes left in the first quarter.

Kent Island shaved that lead to 13-10 just 53 seconds into the second quarter, when Chappell hammered a 38-yard field goal.

Easton responded with O’Connor’s 4-yard touchdown run and a two-point pass to Colin Mooney for a 21-10 halftime lead.

“Good football team,” Davis said of Easton. “Definitely a physical football team. We weren’t as physical as we needed to be tonight. And we had some big plays taken away by penalties.”

Henry fired his second touchdown pass with 43.2 seconds left in the game when he hit Isaiah Diaz for a 29-yard score.

“We’ve got work to do obviously,” Davis said.

O’Connor said the same thing of Easton.

“I thought this win was big for us. Kind of a like statement,” said O’Connor, who leads Easton into another battle of unbeatens next Friday at defending Class 2A state champion Stephen Decatur. “I feel like I played all right. But I could have done a lot of things better.”