By Kalle Oakes,Staff Writer

Oak Hill waited three-and-a-half seasons to see what a healthy Zac Eaton had to offer in a regular-season football game.

Not only was it worth the wait, Eaton’s arrival could be the necessary ingredient that pushes the Raiders back into the Eastern Class B playoffs after a one-year absence.

With Eaton bringing his uncommon package of speed and power to the tailback spot at Gardiner last Friday night, Oak Hill (2-4) finally had the full complement of skill position athletes that made coach Bruce Nicholas so optimistic in August. Eaton’s arrival allowed Eric Daniels and Wally Rines to line up at their natural fullback and tailback spots, respectively, and made them twice as dangerous when they got there.

“When Zac was injured, it changed a lot of the things we wanted to do. To have our full complement of backs, that was nice,” Nicholas said.

Eaton lugged the ball 22 times for 107 yards in the 28-20 loss, collecting most of his gains after initial contact. With the 6-foot, 200-pound senior keeping the defense honest, Rines ripped off a 43-yard gain on a counter play early in the game and wound up with 81 total yards.

Daniels, back in his comfort zone as the short yardage guy, rambled for 48 yards and all three Oak Hill touchdowns. He also caught a pass.

It has been a long road for Eaton, who sustained a stress fracture in his foot his freshman year and sat out the last two seasons. This season’s injury ailment also was a stress fracture.

Over the summer, according to Nicholas, Eaton opened eyes by running the 40-yard dash in 4.6 seconds at football camp.

Now the concern shifts to Rines, who missed the fourth quarter and a potential game-winning drive against Gardiner with an apparent left knee injury.

“He would have been a good guy to have on the field,” Nicholas said.

Tough losses to fellow middle-of-the-pack teams have backed Oak Hill into a corner. Before the defeat at neighboring Gardiner, Oak Hill dropped tough ones to Mount Desert Island (6-0 on a last-minute interception return) and Belfast (8-0). The Raiders host winless Maranacook on Saturday but may need to upset Leavitt the following week to earn the eighth and final Pine Tree Conference Class B playoff berth.

Piling up the points

Levi Ervin scored his 16th and 17th touchdowns of the season last Friday night, fueling a 24-point fourth quarter for Lisbon in the Greyhounds’ 30-6 road win at Boothbay.

Ervin reached the end zone from 35 and 60 yards out. He also rushed for a two-point conversion in the final stanza.

Lisbon found a complement for its 6-foot-5, 205-pound Division I prospect, as junior Dan Willis matched Ervin with TD runs of 41 and 8 yards.

Based on the strength of its cross-over opponent, Mattanawcook, Lisbon would sew up the No. 1 seed in the Western Class C playoffs by winning its final two games against Old Orchard Beach and Winthrop.