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LEWISTON – The game began with the Bangor Rams’ defense unable to stop anything Lewiston tried.
It ended with Bangor mounting a goal-line stand on a two-point conversion try by Lewiston in overtime, as the Rams rallied from a 21-0 halftime deficit to outlast the previously unbeaten Blue Devils 28-27 in a Class A football battle Friday night at Don Roux Field.
The win leaves both teams at 5-1, but puts Bangor in great position to finish second in the final Eastern Maine Class A Crabtree points if the Rams close out the season with victories over Mt. Blue of Farmington and Brewer.
“It was all effort,” said senior quarterback and safety Ian Edwards, who passed for 120 yards and rushed for 71 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime. “It shows you what kind of team we are to come out in the second half down 21 points, and we put it to them at some points. We hit harder, we brought the intensity, and we hit harder.”
Bangor tied the game at 21-21 on a 21-yard run by Kyle Vanidestine (20 carries, 154 yards) with 5:22 left in the fourth quarter, capping off a 55-yard drive after Bangor stopped Lewiston’s Wesley Myers short of a first down on a fourth-and goal run up the middle.
The Rams nearly won in regulation after getting the ball near midfield when Steven Seccareccia tackled Myers short of a first down on a fake punt attempt. A 36-yard pass from Edwards to Shane Walton gave Bangor first-and-goal at the 10, but two plays later the Rams were unable to set up a final play before time expired.
Bangor had the ball first in overtime from the Lewiston 10, and Edwards scored on a second-down run around left end from 9 yards out to give the Rams their first lead.
Vanidestine added the extra point to give Bangor a 28-21 lead.
Three straight runs by Myers, the final one from 4 yards out, produced a Lewiston touchdown. The Blue Devils opted to go for the two-point conversion and the win, and gained extra yardage when Bangor jumped offsides.
Myers then got the ball, but Bangor end Renaud Collard-Seguin wrapped his arms around Myers’ legs and his defensive mates finished off the tackle to preserve the win.
“When they have a yard and a half to get, we know we have to play aggressive up front and just make a play and hit somebody,” said Collard-Seguin. “I just went in there and hit as hard I could, and we made a play.
“After I hit the blocker, I realized I had his leg and then it was just a matter of bringing him down.”
“I thought we had that extra point,” added Lewiston coach Bill County. “We went with the no-play and got half the distance on the offsides, and then I thought we were in on that last one. I don’t regret making that call, I think you go for the win and see what happens.”
The first half was all Lewiston, as Myers (37 carries, 160 yards, three touchdowns) and fullback Matt Letourneau (20-117) ran through Bangor’s defense and the Blue Devils scored on their first three possessions, while Bangor hurt itself with a pair of fumbles.
Lewiston’s drives went for 64, 46 and 74 yards, with Myers scoring on runs of 3 and 5 yards in the first quarter and Letourneau breaking a quick opener 45 yards through a stunned Bangor defense to extend the margin to 21-0 with 9:02 left in the first half.
Bangor finally countered after taking the second-half kickoff, marching 73 yards in five plays. A 44-yard pass from Edwards to C.J. Eaton set up the score, a 5-yard keeper by Edwards that gave the Rams life, down 21-7 with 9:43 left in the third quarter.
Lewiston then mounted a 12-play, six-minute drive to the Bangor 15, but Myers was stopped short on a fourth-and-3 carry.
Bangor closed to within 21-15 on a 3-yard run by Edwards with 9:17 left in the fourth quarter, a score set up when Shane Walton intercepted a Mason Giroux pass near midfield and returned it to the Lewiston 27.
Walton then rushed for a two-point conversion after Lewiston was caught offsides on Bangor’s original extra-point kick attempt.
“We knew we didn’t come to play the first half, they did,” said Vanidestine. “They ran all over us the in first half, and we didn’t respond. We really killed ourselves on offense, we fumbled the ball a couple of times right in a row.
“But when we ran the ball in the first half we got good yards, so we were confident in the second half that we were going to score.”
RAMS 28, BLUE DEVILS 27 (OT)
Bangor (5-1) 0 0 7 14 7 – 28
Lewiston (5-1) 14 7 0 0 6 – 27
L-Myers 3 run (Gagnon kick)
L-Myers 5 run (Gagnon kick)
L-Letourneau 45 run (Gagnon kick)
B-Edwards 5 run (Vanidestine kick)
B-Edwards 3 run (Walton rush)
B-Vanidestine 21 run (kick failed)
B-Edwards 9 run (Vanidestine kick)
L-Myers 4 run (rush failed)
Bangor Lewiston
First downs 18 19
Rushing att.-yards 38-234 62-286
Passing comp.-att. 5-12 3-8
Passing yards 120 59
Total yards 354 345
Punts-avg. 1-34.0 0-0
Fumbles-lost 2-2 0-0
Intercepted by 1 0
Penalties-yards 2-6 4-20
Rushing
Bangor: Vanidestine 20-154, Edwards 11-71, Walton 5-8, Billings 2-1; Lewiston: Myers 37-160, Letourneau 20-117, Giroux 5-9
Passing
Bangor: Edwards 5-12-0-120; Lewiston: Giroux 3-8-1-59
Receiving
Bangor: Walton 3-62, Eaton 1-44, Vanidestine 1-14; Lewiston: Brooks 3-59
A-900 (est.)
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