WINSLOW – Momentum, football coaches will tell you, is a lot like their ideal running back.

It’s essential to a team’s success. But it’s also slippery and elusive and unpredictable. Just like a good back.

On Saturday (thanks in large part to the efforts of undefeated Winslow) the Belfast Lions could never … quite … harness the elusive beast.

“We didn’t take care of momentum today,” Belfast coach Butch Arthers said after Winslow had downed his Lions 22-6 in the LTC Class B championship game at Poulin Field.

“When we had it, we didn’t keep it. And that’s something you’ve got to do in this game,” Arthers said.

The 11-0 Black Raiders earned a shot at Western Maine champion York on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Edward Little High in Auburn in a rematch of last year’s state Class B championship matchup. Belfast winds up 8-3.

All day long, the Black Raiders and Lions took turns trying to take the upper hand in what has become an annual postseason appointment between the two Eastern Maine powers.

And nearly every time a big play had to be made, it was made by a kid in a home-black uniform named either Vigue or McInnis.

Winslow junior Ricky Vigue rushed for 128 yards on 17 carries, intercepted two passes, and opened the second half with an 89-yard touchdown jaunt that gave the Raiders a 14-0 lead.

And senior Chris McInnis pitched in with three interceptions (his second three-pick game of the year) and the conversion rush on the Raiders’ first touchdown.

Belfast countered with Jeff Parenteau’s 21-carry, 108-yard effort, but it wasn’t enough.

The Black Raiders struck first against the Lions when Vigue intercepted a second-quarter Ben Cowan pass and returned it 24 yards to the Belfast 11-yard-line.

Three plays later quarterback Chris Langlais dove in from the two. The score, with 2:36 to go until the half, and McInnis’ subsequent rush, made it 8-0.

Winslow wasted no time in padding that lead in the second half, as Vigue sprinted around left end, fended off two tackles at the 20, and kept both feet in bounds long enough to regain his balance.

After that, all he saw was grass: The TD run was an 89-yard gem.

“They were bumping me and I had to keep my balance and play the sideline and [the defender],” Vigue said. “Luckily I got by him without going out of bounds.”

Vigue said the Raiders inserted fullback James Bridges for that play after a halftime talk. Bridges helped let Vigue get to the corner, and the speedy back did the rest.

Arthers was impressed by the run.

“We were in a six-[man] front and just didn’t get the outside support,” Arthers said. “Our end was there, but he had about three-on-one, and our cornerback got sealed inside. … I thought he was gonna be out of bounds, but he did a great job keeping in bounds.”

On the ensuing possession, Belfast roared down the field only to watch momentum slip through its grasp.

Facing a third-and-goal from the six-inch line, Belfast was flagged for delay of game. On fourth down, McInnis picked off a pass in the end zone to end the threat.

“It was a normal situation,” Arthers said. “We send a play in, it goes to the huddle, we go out … They’re obviously watching the clock like they should be, but it’s nothing different than we’ve done all year long, and it was a delay of game.”

Belfast bounced back on its next possession, as Cowan completed a fourth-and-5 pass to Chris Duval that took the ball from the W-40 to the 27.

Parenteau ran 22 yards on the next play and Cowan punched it in on a five-yard keeper with 2:15 to go in the third to make it 14-6.

Winslow fumbled the ball right back to the Lions with 10:43 to play. The momentum switch was brief: Belfast went 3-and-out on the possession.

Winslow answered by ending the next two Belfast possessions with interceptions, and tacked on an insurance score with 3:08 to play on another Langlais dive.

McInnis said his interceptions were pretty simple.

“A lot of the time they’d bring out receivers on just one side and I’d just sink back, watch the quarterback and try to find the ball,” McInnis said.

BLACK RAIDERS 22, LIONS 6

Belfast (8-3) 0 0 6 0?6

Winslow (11-0) 0 8 6 8?22

W?Langlais 2 run (McInnis rush)

W?Vigue 89 run (pass failed

B?Cowan 5 run (rush failed)

W?Langlais 1 run (Runnells rush)

Belfast Winslow

First downs 13 9

Rushing att.-yards 42-152 34-164

Passing comp.-att. 6-11 4-7

Passing yards 58 60

Total yards 210 224

Punts-avg. 3-29.3 3-35.7

Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-1

Intercepted by 0 5

Penalties-yards 6-33 4-40

Rushing

Belfast: Parenteau 21-108, Horne 2-2, Cowan 8-4, Welch 8-34, Reynolds 2-6, Gray 1- (-2); Winslow: Vigue 17-128, McInnis 2-7, Runnells 9-35, Langlais 7- (-6)

Passing

Belfast: Cowan 6-11-5-58; Winslow: Langlais 4-7-0-60

Receiving

Belfast: Horne 2-19, Duval 1-13, Robbins 2-17, Parenteau 1-9; Winslow: Hapworth 1-11, McInnis 1-9, Runnells 2-40

A?2,000 (est.)