By Ben Shanahan

Special to the Sentinel-Tribune

MAUMEE — Eastwood stayed perfect in the Northern Buckeye Conference with a 49-20 win over NBC newcomer Maumee at Kazmaier Stadium Friday.

Eastwood, 4-1 overall, moved to 2-0 in the league while the Panthers fell to 2-3 and 0-2.

The Eagles stayed on cruise control the entire game, but for coach Sam Cotterman, he remained so focused that he lost track of how big a lead the Eagles had.

“I didn’t even know we had a running clock. I get so focused on every drive, which is always a plus and a credit to our offense. Then the defense showed its strength in the second half,” Cotterman said.

For Cotterman, it was easy to focus on the offense as junior quarterback Kadyn Donnell had one throwing and three rushing touchdowns while completing 7-of-10 passes for 137 yards and running for 85 yards on 13 carries.

Eastwood senior running back Caiden Maize had three rushing touchdowns and 171 yards on 21 carries.

Andre Lewis caught three passes for 62 yards, Kaiden Sanchez caught two passes for 57 yards, Dayquan Oliver had a 10-yard reception and Brock Messinger had an eight-yard reception for the Eagles.

Defensively, Kevin Lewis led the Eagles with 8½ tackles, Andrew Badenhop had eight tackles, Ausitn Maize had 5½ tackles, Paul Lautzenheiser had two sacks, and Wyatt Oestreich and Andre Lewis had interceptions.

“After the grind we put in every single week, it feels good to come out here and show this kind of dominance,” said Donnell.

For Maumee, the tough loss was not all negative as junior running back Cody Wulf showed coach Evan Karchner lots of promise for the future, racking up one rushing touchdown and 128 yards rushing on 25 carries.

“Cody is a Swiss Army Knife. He kicks for us, kicks field goals, and runs for us,” Karchner said. “I honestly think he is one of the best players in the NBC and definitely one of the best players in Northwest Ohio.

“I am really glad we have him on our team for the next two years, and he will be a special player to watch.”

The Eagles set the tone early as Donnell led his team on a seven-play, 67-yard drive. Donnell found junior receiver Andre Lewis on a 12-yard pass good for six points, putting the Eagles up 7-0 with 9:32 remaining in the opening frame.

The Panthers did not just roll over. Sophomore quarterback Ben Kubicz led Maumee on a 64-yard, nine-play drive, finding his brother, sophomore Will Kubicz, on a 28-yard touchdown pass, tying the game at 7-7 with five minutes left on the clock.

The first quarter offensive fireworks continued as the Eagles went on a six-play, 55-yard scoring drive. Donnell sneaked the ball in from the one-yard line, making it 14-7 Eagles with 2:43 remaining in the first.

Maumee’s next drive bled into the second quarter, but would end abruptly as Kublicz’s pass was intercepted. Eastwood used the defensive momentum to cruise into a three-play, 80-yard drive that saw Maize run for seven yards, then 61 yards, and finally 12 yards into the end zone, making it 21-7 with 9:10 left in the half.

The Eagles defense seemed to stand again, apparently forcing the Panthers into punt formation until Wulf faked the punt, ran for 22 yards and a first down, giving the Panthers hope.

From there, the Panthers ended the nine-play, 80-yard drive as Wulf ran in for a three-yard score. The Panthers were down by just two scores, 28-14, with 3:38 left in the half.

Donnell had one more first half touchdown in him, carrying the ball for 22 yards into the end zone, capping off a 57-yard, six-play drive that made it 35-14 going into the half.

Both teams struggled out of the locker room, punting on their opening drives. Maumee’s second drive of the half seemed to be building momentum, but the Eagles’ defense forced its second interception of the game. Kublicz was picked off with 4:23 left in the third.

That momentum would still not get the Eagles’ offense back on track, as their next drive would stall, forcing them to punt once again. leading the Panthers to start another drive. Unfortunately for Maumee, the Eagles defense would step up again and Kublicz’s pass was intercepted with 11:12 left in the game.

That rewoke the dormant Eagles’ offense up as they went on an 11-play, 98-yard drive, scoring on Maize’s second TD of the night, a five-yard run, making it 42-14.

After a Panther turnover on downs, Maize scored another touchdown on a two-yard run after a five-play, 27-yard drive, making it 49-14. That started the running clock going that Cotterman was apparently unaware of.

Kubicz’ threw one more TD pass covering 47 yards to complete the scoring.