WATERVILLE — Pick a bridge connecting Waterville and Winslow, the Carter Memorial, Ticonic or Two Cent. Right now, they all belong to the Black Raiders.
Winslow scored 35 unanswered points in the second quarter to pull away with a 57-16 win over rival Waterville at Drummond Field on Saturday afternoon to win the annual Battle of the Bridge game. Counting playoff games, the victory was the 10th straight over Waterville for the Black Raiders, the longest win-streak for either side in the history of the rivalry.
Winslow, now 7-1, will be the No. 1 seed in the Class C North playoffs. Waterville finished 2-6.
“It was a good team win. Everybody got to play, and now we’re getting ready for the second season. We have to gear it up now,” Winslow coach Mike Siviski said.
The Black Raiders scored quickly and often in the first half. Winslow ran 18 offensive plays in the first half, scoring on six of them. A seventh first half touchdown came on Rob Clark’s 57-yard punt return for a score with 10:13 left in the half, giving Winslow a 29-0 lead. Clark also had a 5-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Fullback Evan Bourget had touchdown runs of 6 and 3 yards.
Winslow Quarterback Colby Pomeroy scored on a 20-yard run, and threw a pair of touchdown passes. Pomeroy’s 31-yard touchdown pass to Nate Newgard 32 seconds into the second quarter gave the Black Raiders a 22-0 lead. Midway through the quarter, Pomeroy connected with Cody Ivey on a 55-yard touchdown pass for a 43-0 lead.
Waterville got on the board in the final minute of the third quarter when Anthony Singh (99 yards rushing) scored on a 23-yard run. Trafton Gilbert (136 yards rushing, 37 receiving) caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from Liam VonOesen with 4:24 to play for the Purple Panthers’ other score.
Tyler Brockway caught a 49-yard touchdown pass from Reid Gagnon early in the fourth quarter for Winslow’s second half touchdown.
After the game, Waterville coach Matt Gilley praised his team’s effort, particularly that of the team’s seven seniors.
“Overall, they don’t quit. The ebb and flow of the game, some of these guys have to understand that things are going to go well sometimes and sometimes they won’t, and you’ve got to approach it the same way,” Gilley said. “This senior group, they know what it takes, and they’ve played a lot of football for us since 2016. They’ve done a lot for this program, and we appreciate their efforts. They set a good example of how to work.”
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
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