CUMBERLAND – Six long weeks evaporated and 40 degrees of Fahrenheit disappeared since Cam Kaubris last threw a football in earnest or delivered a meaningful hit.

Mountain Valley High School’s injured quarterback and defensive back did more than get those issues out of the way Saturday night. He landed a giant haymaker on each side of the line of scrimmage, staking the undefeated Falcons to a 21-0 triumph over pesky Greely.

Kaubris lined up as a halfback and threw a 24-yard option pass to Tyler Mason for a touchdown with less than a minute remaining in the first half, fattening the Falcons’ modest 7-0 lead to a cozier, two-touchdown cushion.

“I had to throw it like a javelin thrower,” said Kaubris, who separated his right (throwing) shoulder while making a tackle in Mountain Valley’s preseason scrimmage against Skowhegan. “I reared back and threw it as hard as I could. I lofted it up there and somehow, an act of God, it got over the defensive back and Tyler caught it.”

His first defensive contact was equally productive. Kaubris jarred the ball out of Greely quarterback Justin Moore’s hands late in the third quarter. Brady Fergola recovered the fumble.

It was the only turnover Mountain Valley (6-0) forced all night in hammering out its fifth shutout of the season. Wells is the only opponent to score against the Falcons to date.

“That was really my first hit in six weeks, and there was a little bit of mental block to get past,” said Kaubris. “I was warming it up on the sideline at halftime. That throw felt like it might have broken something that was holding me back.”

Kaubris’ return provided an emotional lift for the Falcons, who surprisingly needed it to stave off the Rangers (2-4) in their homecoming game.

“They were gunning for us,” Fergola said of Greely. “This was pretty much their season. It was a hard-fought game, but we stepped up.”

Maybe it wasn’t vintage Mountain Valley, but the Falcons’ 18th consecutive game had many earmarks of the same old, same old.

Matt Duka (17 carries, 130 yards) and Mason (11 for 114) each crossed the century mark on the ground and rushed for a touchdown. Mason’s 62-yard explosion off a counter criss-cross play on the first play of the second half put Greely out of reach.

Mountain Valley surrendered only 93 yards and five first downs. Fergola, Duka, Christian Durland, Cole Clark, Ryan Glover and Ryan Laubauskas were frequent tacklers. 

“We talked all week about narrowing the field, because their quarterback (the 5-foot-5 Moore) was quick,” Fergola said.

Durland’s hit on Alex Parenteau forced a fumble after Greely went for the first down on fourth-and-1 from its own 47 on the opening series. Greely pounced on the ball, but it fell shy of the chains and set the stage for business as usual on the Falcons’ first drive.

Duka’s 15-yard ramble and a 20-yard burst by Mason but Duka in position for a 5-yard push into the end zone.

“They’re a great team,” Greely coach David Higgins said of Mountain Valley. “They have a tremendous tradition and great athletes. We were sputtering a little bit, but it’s a tribute to them. You never like to lose, obviously, but I think we did OK.”

Kaubris’ connection with Mason capped a 15-play drive that drained five minutes and featured fourth-down conversions by QB Chris Day and Duka. The longest play of the drive prior to the touchdown was a 14-yard strike from Day to Durland.

koakes@sunjournal.com

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