WATERVILLE — Late in the fourth quarter of the final game of his college football career, Colby senior Jabari Hurdle-Price enjoyed the kind of rush that running backs hope they get someday. Hurdle-Price went 50 yards, untouched.

“Space. A lot of space. A lot of green grass. That’s what you dream of,” Hurdle-Price said. “My knee was hurting. It kept me out for a few weeks, but it feels good to be back. It feels good to end on a high note.”

That 50-yard touchdown run was just a piece of Hurdle-Price’s 161-yard day, his best game of an injury-riddled season. It also was the exclamation point on Colby’s 32-16 win over rival Bowdoin at Seaverns Field on Saturday.

Colby ended the season with a 3-5 record while Bowdoin is 0-8. The game was for bragging rights because Bates clinched the Colby-Bates-Bowdoin title last week with a win over Bowdoin.

With four field goals, Colby kicker John Baron set a New England Small College Athletic Conference record with 13 field goals in a season. Baron was 8 of 8 on field goal tries over the final two weeks of the season.

The Mules never trailed, although the Polar Bears kept it close for three quarters. When Nate Richam scored on a 2-yard run late in the third quarter, it pulled Bowdoin within 13-10.

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It was all Colby in the fourth quarter, however.

“These guys played their hearts out for each other,” Colby Coach Jonathan Michaeles said.

Baron’s 21-yard field goal 49 seconds into the fourth quarter – his third of the game – extended Colby’s lead to 16-10. With just under nine minutes to play, the Polar Bears decided to go for it on fourth-and-2 from their 38. Sebastien Philemon and Sam Gomez stuffed Christopher Markisz for no gain, giving the Mules the ball. Colby went the 38 yards in four plays, all on Hurdle-Price runs, and scored when he went in for a 1-yard touchdown and a 22-10 lead with 6:48 to play.

After forcing the Polar Bears three and out, Colby took over on the 50 with 5:45 left. Hurdle-Price broke free down the left sideline on the drive’s first play, pushing the Mules’ lead to 29-10.

The Mules gained 331 yards, including 193 on the ground. Being persistent was the key, Hurdle-Price said.

“They came back a little bit in the third quarter, kept the game close for a while, but we kept trucking along, keep doing what we do, keep believing in the process,” Hurdle-Price said.

Colby took a 6-0 lead in the first quarter when Baron made field goals of 24 and 23 yards. With 9:42 left in the second quarter, quarterback Gabe Harrington ran 29 yards for a touchdown and a 13-0 lead. A senior, Harrington accounted for 147 yards of offense in his first game since injuring his right knee against Williams in the season opener.

Craig Strand had 1.5 sacks for the Colby defense, while Gomez had a sack and a fumble recovery. Don Vivian’s 29-yard interception return in the fourth quarter set up Baron’s fourth field goal, a 35-yarder with 2:30 to play.

Bowdoin scored with 31 seconds left, when Liam Ford caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Tim Drakely. Ford had 11 catches for 104 yards. Richam ran for 112 yards for the Polar Bears.


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