Bangor will face Gardiner Cougars, Indians meet in other semi

For Bangor and Gardiner, the high school football season has come full circle.

These two 8-1 teams, who meet Friday night in a Pine Tree Conference Class A semifinal at Hoch Field in Gardiner, have met before.

It was mid-August, 21/2 months and about 50 degrees ago in a scrimmage that capped off the first week of preseason practices.

Defense ruled that day, with each team scoring one touchdown and Gardiner converting a two-point conversion while Bangor kicked its extra point.

Defense has continued to be a strong suit for both teams, with No. 5 Bangor yielding 11 points per game and No. 1 Gardiner allowing 9.9 points per contest.

“Gardiner’s very much like we are,” said Bangor coach Mark Hackett. “They don’t beat themselves, they stay pretty focused, they’re a solid football team, defensively they bend but don’t break and they don’t turn over the ball.”

Bangor is coming off a 16-13 victory at No. 4 Brunswick, a win in which the Rams capitalized on Brunswick mistakes.

Junior tailback Nick Payson was the chief beneficiary, returning a free kick 60 yards for a touchdown after a Brunswick safety caused by an errant punt snap. He also gained 131 of his 139 rushing yards after intermission and rushed for a TD after a Brunswick turnover as the Rams rallied from a 7-0 halftime deficit.

Bangor’s run game was aided by the blocking of senior fullback Ricky Dexter and a line led by seniors Andrew Trundy, Eric Anderson and Kyle Oliver.

Payson topped the 1,000-yard mark with his performance against Brunswick, and now has 1,104 yards on the season.

Other offensive leaders for the Rams are senior quarterback Brian Hackett (45 of 87 passing for 613 yards) and senior wideout Anthony DeRosa (25 receptions for 414 yards).

Dexter leads the Rams defense with 62 tackles, while Oliver (58), Payson (55), Anderson (53) and Aaron Gallant (45 tackles, two interceptions) are other key defenders.

Gardiner is undefeated against PTC competition, its only loss a 20-14 decision in its crossover game at Western A Kennebunk in Week 2.

Coach Matt Brown’s Tigers have won seven straight since then, led by a freshman quarterback in Kyle Stilphen (678 passing yards during the regular season).

“He’s as good a quarterback as there is in the league,” said Hackett. “He doesn’t play like a freshman, more like a junior.”

Gardiner features two big, talented running backs in Tom Colby and Craig Toulouse, who combined for 1,356 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns during the regular season.

Gardiner advanced with a 35-6 quarterfinal domination of No. 8 Oxford Hills of South Paris. Colby rushed for 164 yards and Toulouse added 63.

“They’re very much like Brunswick,” said Hackett. “We may be a little bigger up front, but I think it’s going to be a pretty good game. I think it will be a little more wide open than last week.”

No. 7 Skowhegan (4-5) vs. No. 3 Mt. Blue (8-1), 7 p.m. Friday, Caldwell Field, Farmington: The other PTC Class A semifinal matches teams that squared off just two weeks ago in Skowhegan, with Mt. Blue winning a 48-32 shootout.

Skowhegan posted its first road win of the season in upending No. 2 Windham 46-20 in the quarterfinals, while Mt. Blue handled No. 6 Messalonskee of Oakland 28-13.

Mt. Blue features a balanced running game led by Hazen Pingree (606 yards), while the Cougars’ passing game featuring junior quarterback Mason Barker has become more of a factor as the season has progressed.

Skowhegan boasts a top running back tandem in junior Aaron Chambers (1,491 rushing yards, 18 TDs) and senior Jason Lisherness.