WALDOBORO — Traditionally, the Winslow football team has been on the winning end of these league game trouncings. This time, the Black Raiders were the ones taking it on the chin.
Medomak Valley ran all over the Winslow defense and shut down the Black Raiders in the run game in a 40-0 victory Saturday in Waldoboro. The defeat was Winslow’s worst in a league game since a 54-0 loss to Hampden Academy in 2009.
“They just beat us today, plain and simple,” said Winslow head coach Wes Littlefield. “They did a really good job squeezing us and preventing us from finding any running lanes, and they were able to move the ball on us when they needed to.”
Medomak Valley forced a three-and-out from Winslow (1-1) to begin the game and mounted a nine-play, 65-yard scoring drive that culminated with a 7-yard touchdown run from Porter Gahagan to pull ahead 7-0 midway through the first quarter. After another defensive stand, the Panthers scored again with 6:56 left in the half when Hayden Staples found the end zone from 2 yards out.
Following an interception by Blake Morrison, Medomak (2-0) drove down the field again and made it 20-0 on a 5-yard touchdown run from Aaron Reed with 2:26 left in the half. The Panthers then made it 27-0 just 16 seconds before halftime after a blocked punt led to a 3-yard touchdown run from Staples.
Winslow had a chance for a momentum swing to begin the second half after forcing a turnover on downs and getting a first down on a long Gavin Chambers run. But two plays later, Pedro Garcia fumbled on what would have been a first-down completion, and the Panthers took advantage as a 27-yard scamper from Reed put the home team up 34-0.
Staples rushed for 163 yards on 22 carries for Medomak Valley, and Reed, who ran it in for the Panthers’ last touchdown midway through the fourth quarter, had 76 yards on 13 carries. Quarterback Wyatt Simmons, who completed 13 passes for 140 yards last week, completed just three for 42 yards this week as the Panthers stuck with the run game.
“We ran a lot last year, and we have a lot of confidence in our run game,” said Medomak head coach Ryan Snell. “The pass game was what came to us last week, but today, we thought we could be physical with them. It feels funny saying that about Winslow because they’re always so physical, but we came out and executed well.”
Chambers ran for 58 yards on eight carries for Winslow, though 30 of those yards came on a single play late in the third quarter. The Black Raiders made a few plays offensively now and again but ultimately failed to mount any threatening drives as Medomak won the battle in the trenches.
Winslow defensive backs Zak King (6) and Michael McCullough (22) converge on Medomak Valley wide receiver Gatlin Bedenik during a football game Saturday in Waldoboro. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal
The loss of standout running back Matt Quirion to injury, who ran for nearly 200 yards in Winslow’s season-opening victory over Old Town, was certainly no help. Without Quirion’s speed, the Black Raiders lacked a much-needed dimension in the run game, a weakness Medomak was able to exploit.
“Not having him (absolutely hurt), for sure,” Littlefield said. “He’s one of our leaders for us, especially emotionally, and he’s our hammer. We’re going to have to figure some things out with the kids we have and find a way to move forward without him.”
The matchup went much differently than the last battle between Winslow and Medomak in 2019, which the Black Raiders won 76-6. Whereas Winslow has used these games to send a message of its contender status in seasons gone by, the Panthers might have done the same thing Saturday afternoon.
“Last time we played them, it obviously didn’t go well for us, so this is something we can be proud of,” Snell said. “It’s just one week at a time. I know that’s kind of cliché and status quo, but that’s what our mentality needs to be.”
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