Portland had to kick off their season on the road on Friday, but they showed no ill effects. They were the clear victor by a 40-20 margin over Oxford Hills/Buckfield. Given the Bulldogs' advantage in MaxPreps' Maine football rankings (they are ranked third, while the are ranked 49th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Portland was led to victory by Louis Thurston and Cordell Jones. Thurston rushed for 113 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries, while Jones gained 229 total yards and two touchdowns. The dominant performance gave him a new career- in total yards. Brody Viola was in the mix too, providing Portland with two touchdowns.
On the other side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Portland's defense and their three sacks. Lisandro Rodrigues was particularly dangerous to the passing game, picking up twohimself. He didn't just play on offense: he also picked up two sacks and made six total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Portland will challenge Windham at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. As for Oxford Hills/Buckfield, they will head out to challenge Bonny Eagle at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
