BRUNSWICK — Will Bessey ran for four touchdowns and 369 yards as top-seeded Brunswick held off fourth-ranked Messalonskee 27-20 in an Eastern Class B football semifinal Friday night.
The Dragons (8-1) will take on Lawrence or Cony, who meet Saturday, in the regional championship game at home next weekend.
Brunswick earned its second consecutive trip to the regional final by avenging its only loss of the season.
On Oct. 10, the Eagles (5-5) snapped the Dragons’ season-opening five-game win streak with a 21-7 victory at Oakland.
“Our kids were a little overconfident the first time and I made some bad calls,” Brunswick Coach Dan Cooper said. “We didn’t make any mistakes (in this game) to help them. We did that last time.”
Bessey scored on runs of 92 and 78 yards on his first two carries to help propel the Dragons to a 14-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the game.
Less than three minutes into the second quarter, Jack Bernatchez of Messalonskee scored the first of his three touchdowns on a 7-yard run that capped a 12-play, 71-yard drive following Bessey’s second touchdown.
Brunswick moved into a 21-7 lead after Bessey, who rushed for 257 yards on eight carries in the first half, scored on a 40-yard run with one minute left in the second quarter.
Messalonskee possessed the ball for nearly two-thirds of the second half, when it held a 33-17 edge in offensive plays.
The Eagles scored on their first possession of the second half.
With 4:15 remaining in the third quarter, Bernatchez scored on a 5-yard run to help reduce the deficit to 21-14.
The touchdown came on the 12th play of an 83-yard drive following Brunswick’s second punt of the game.
With 4:31 left in the game, Bernatchez plunged in from the 1 to make it 21-20, capping a 17-play drive that started at the Messalonskee 8 following another punt.
The Eagles tried to run off a fake kick for a 2-point conversion but it failed.
“We came down here to win,” Messalonskee Coach Brad Bishop said, explaining why he made that call.
Three plays after the ensuing kickoff, Bessey scored on a 91-yard run.
“We moved the ball and did some good things but (Brunswick) scored quick,” Bishop said. “We came up short, that’s all.”
The Eagles managed to move to the Brunswick 31 on their final possession.
That drive ended when linebacker Tristan Graves picked off a pass on his 18 on a fourth-down play.
“We just wanted to play four quarters and give ourselves a chance to win,” Cooper said. “We seemed to be on defense all night, and we made the (defensive) plays when we needed to.”
Bernatchez ended up rushing for 178 yards on 27 carries. C.J. Gordon rushed for 95 yards on 11 carries, and Caleb Chavarie followed with 83 yards on 18 carries for Messalonskee.
“We came down here against the No. 1 team,” Bishop said. “We battled them right to the last minute of the game.”
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