Boothbay nearly overcame a two touchdown deficit at home Sept. 7 against Belfast, but a costly fumbled center exchange with just over two minutes remaining resulted in the team’s second straight loss. On the night, Boothbay had three turnovers (two fumbles and one interception) which aided Class C Belfast in building a 24-6 third  quarter lead.

Another factor was penalties. Three Seahawks touchdowns were wiped out due to penalties. In all total, the fumbles, bumbles and stumbles were too much for Boothbay to overcome in their 24-18 loss to Belfast. The defending Class E champion is now 0-2. Belfast returns to Class C play with a 1-1 mark.

For Seahawk defensive back George Swope, the team’s mistakes resulted in the defeat. “Things didn’t go our way. There were too many penalties and mistakes, but what I think it showed was we can beat this team in the future. We found our identity at halftime. Last year, we were a second half team and we played much better in the second half tonight.”

Boothbay trailed 12-0 late in the second quarter when quarterback Hunter Crocker scored the first of his three rushing touchdowns. But a squib kick on the ensuing kickoff left Belfast near the midfield, and three plays later, the Lions scored with 49.6 seconds remaining to regain a two-touchdown lead.

The second half was a different story. Crocker scored twice on rushing touchdowns, and the Seahawk defense held Belfast to one score. With two minutes and 15 seconds remaining, Boothbay was first and goal from the Belfast 10. A bad snap left the ball on the ground and a Lion defender pounced on it.

Despite the loss, Boothbay head coach Ed Crocker sees a brighter future for his team. It played better than it did in week one during a 41-8 loss to Freeport and has started to look more like a cohesive unit. “We did a lot of good things tonight, but we still haven’t come together as a team,” he said. “Even when we were behind, the kids never hung their heads. They always thought we were in it, and played like it the whole game.”

Boothbay travels to Bethel on Saturday for a 1:30 p.m. game against Telstar who lost both games this season against Traip and Camden Hills.