Major Maine high school news broke hours before kickoff Friday, when it was announced that Lisbon would forfeit its football game against Mountain Valley due to an ongoing police investigation into an alleged hazing incident at Lisbon High.

That wasn’t the only Week 5 contest that could not be played as scheduled. St. John Valley, a co-op of Fort Kent, Madawaska and Wisdom, forfeited its game against Ellsworth on Friday, and Westbrook’s game at Massabesic and Winslow’s showdown against John Bapst were rescheduled.

In an email sent last Wednesday, Fort Kent Athletic Director Josh Nichols informed Maine Principals’ Association Executive Director Mike Burnham and Ellsworth Athletic Director Josh Frost that St. John Valley would forfeit Friday’s game. With some players injured and others unable to play because of the potato harvest and a school trip to Europe, the Mustangs had only 10 players available.

Roster struggles were already an issue for St. John Valley, which had its Week 1 game against Houlton called in the second quarter as injuries mounted. Still, the Mustangs are expected to return to action this week as Bucksport makes the trip north for an eight-man small school meeting

“We’re going up there, for sure,” said Bucksport Coach Sean Geagan. “I’ve talked with their coach and we’re going to play.”

The forfeits throw a wrench into plans not only for Lisbon and St. John Valley, but their opponents. Mountain Valley Coach Pat Mooney was looking forward to his team returning to action after a difficult 47-0 loss to Wells in Week 4, but instead the Falcons must wait until Thursday’s game at Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale/Kents Hill.

“We played Dirigo (Sept. 20), and then the following week against Wells, we had subs in after halftime,” Mooney said. “They were very good and we did not play well, and then we had the forfeit this week. So since the end of the Dirigo game, it will be something around 20 days, just about three weeks (since the starters played a full game).” 

Elsewhere, Massabesic’s road game against Westbrook was scheduled for Friday, then moved to 10 a.m. Saturday after a threatening message in a Massabesic High bathroom resulted in the cancellation of school. The Mustangs defeated the Blue Blazes 30-14 to improve to 4-1.

Winslow’s game against John Bapst, initially scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at Cameron Stadium in Bangor, was postponed after a fire that began Tuesday at Eagle Point Energy Center in Orrington led to unsafe air conditions. That game was rescheduled for Monday night at Hermon High.

Brewer’s Friday home game against Maine Central Institute was also being monitored due to odors from the fire being present at the school, though it was ultimately played as scheduled. The Witches defeated the Huskies, 34-0.

AFTER A 1-3 START, Friday’s emphatic 40-16 win over Sanford was big for Marshwood. It was even bigger, though, given the loss of a beloved community figure earlier in the day.

Robert “Bear” Fontaine died Friday morning at age 74. The 1968 Marshwood graduate was a football player under legendary head coach Rod Wotton as well as a longtime youth sports coach and football referee.

“He was your typical Marshwood guy,” said Hawks Coach Alex Rotsko. “It’s the type of community where people stay for generations, and he was one of them. He grew up there, he played three sports there, and he stayed in town and was involved. He was very well-known and loved in the community.”

Fontaine was a member of Wotton’s first football team at South Berwick High in 1964, before South Berwick and Eliot consolidated to form Marshwood High in 1966. With his brother, Pete, Fontaine later spent many years on the sidelines for the Southwestern Maine Football Board of Officials.

“He was a staple in the middle of the field,” said board president Michael Floridino. “He was pretty disciplined but he was also a jokester with the guys. That’s the kind of official you want to work with — that knows the game and will ref it right, but will still have a good time while you’re out there. … Everybody had respect for him.”

Fontaine was especially well-known around youth sports, directing Marshwood Youth Basketball and also officiating Marshwood Little Hawks football games. He spent years coaching middle school girls basketball and was Marshwood High’s head softball coach from 1997-2005.

“He was like a grandfather to so many kids, and he was the type of guy who always wanted to help and never said no,” said Athletic Director Rich Buzzell. “I know his family was watching a stream of the game because I heard from them afterward. It was definitely (an emotional night). He’ll be missed.”

On Sept. 29, Fontaine was inducted into the Marshwood Hall of Fame’s inaugural class. Although he was hospitalized and could not be present for the ceremony, Fontaine was able to watch a live stream as he was inducted with Wotton and a former teammate, Alan Robertshaw.

A moment of silence for Fontaine was held at Marshwood’s Veterans Memorial Field prior to Friday night’s game. It was a fitting start to a night that saw the Hawks get back on track, limiting Sanford to just 68 yards and avenging a 42-6 defeat to the Spartans last season.

“Any time you have a big win, it brings a lot of positivity, especially like that,” Rotsko said. “We’ve been struggling a little bit and have had a rash of injuries, so for us to get a win like that against Sanford after they handled us last year was really important. It was a big lift for the team.”

IT’S BEEN A trying few years for the Madison Bulldogs, a program steeped in tradition. Entering Week 3, the Bulldogs had a record of 1-24 this decade as well as the state’s longest losing streak at 18 games.

But Madison hasn’t stopped fighting. The Bulldogs snapped that streak with a 13-0 victory over Belfast two weeks ago, and after a tough loss in Week 4 against Dirigo, took another step forward Friday with a 20-6 road win over Mattanawcook Academy.

“It’s been pretty special,” said third-year Madison Coach Danny Moreshead of seeing the team’s hard work rewarded. “We obviously still have a long ways to go, but it shows you that, if our kids keep working and keep busting their butts like they have, things can pay off.”

Madison (2-3) scored two unanswered touchdowns in the second half after the teams took a 6-6 tie into the break. Jayden Horton (two passing touchdowns, 12 carries for 67 yards and a touchdown, eight tackles) and Jacob Hilenski (21 carries for 102 yards) had strong games.

Mattanawcook, which lost the previous week to juggernaut Foxcroft Academy by the same 20-6 margin, had success defensively, limiting Madison to 217 yards. But the Bulldogs’ defense was even better, holding Mattanawcook to 138 yards and recovering four fumbles.

“We had a hard time moving the ball in the first half, but we made some adjustments and got things going, and cleaned up our mistakes,” Moreshead said. “Defensively, we just played a great game all throughout. The kids played tough and they stuck to their assignments.”

The game was the first meeting since 1989 between the two mill-town teams. Realignment has brought many matchups of old back to Maine high school football in recent seasons, and for the Bulldogs, a win against their new Class D North foes made the 115-mile bus ride back to Madison a good one.

“It’s a beautiful area, and it was good for a lot of the kids to go up there and see a place they hadn’t seen before,” Moreshead said. “I know a lot of our kids have never been up that far before, so it was cool for them to do that and come back home with a win. I’d do it again, for sure.

Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale/Kents Hill quarterback Braden Branagan throws to Brody Adams in the Ramblers’ win over Poland on Saturday in Poland. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal