Massabesic Mustangs 20
Windham Eagles 14
It’s only preseason.
The Windham Eagles can take solace in the fact that the games don’t start to count until this week after dropping a preseason game to Massabesic 20-14.
The Eagles, playing in front of an enthusiastic home crowd struggled in the first half against the visiting Mustangs before settling down and getting back into the game after the break.
Windham started out the game on offense with running back Nate Johnson handling the bulk of the carries on the opening drive. The Eagles drove the ball down to the Mustangs’ 35-yard-line before being forced to punt.
Taking over on their own 5-yard-line, the Mustangs featured big runs by quarterback Jeff Elliot and junior Joey Eon leading the Mustangs on a 95-yard touchdown scoring drive culminated by a one-yard touchdown plunge by Eon. After the extra point failed, the Mustangs held a 6-0 lead.
Windham took the ensuing kickoff back to its own 34, but the offense, behind Johnson, wasn’t able to move the ball, and was forced to punt. The Eagles almost got a huge break when Massabesic’s Quintin Drain fumbled the punt, but he was able to quickly recover the ball.
Massabesic continued its running attack, as Elliot kept the ball for several long gains on quarterback scrambles during the drive, which was fittingly capped off by a 3-yard touchdown run by Elliot on a keeper for Massabesic’s second touchdown in as many drives.
Windham wasn’t able to get its offense on track in its third possession and was forced to punt again. This time, the Mustangs handed the Eagles a huge break when Drain mishandled the punt and Windham pounced on the ball on the Mustangs’ 31.
Going to work on offense, the Eagles, led by quarterback Jackson Taylor, drove down the field, with the drive’s big yards coming on two passes from Taylor to Travis Guerrette. The Eagles got as far as the Mustangs’ 15, but were stopped when a fourth-and-seven play went only for five yards.
Taking over on downs, Massabesic began from their own 10, and on the first play from scrimmage, Eon rumbled down the left sideline for a huge 37-yard gain. After a run by RJ Kuni and a 25-yard pass from Elliot to Nick Lund, the Mustangs’ drive was in jeopardy when Elliot fumbled a snap and was taken down in the backfield for an 11-yard loss.
But Elliot and the Mustangs came up huge.
Facing fourth-and-15 from the Eagle’s 31, Elliot connected with Kuni across the middle for a 27-yard gain, making it first-and-goal from the Eagles’ 4-yard-line with less than a minute left.
The Mustangs’ didn’t waste any time getting into the end zone however, as Nolan Rollins took a handoff from Elliot and went up the middle for the score, making it 20-0 at the half.
Windham made a furious attempt to score before halftime, marching from their own 30 to the Mustangs’ 26 behind big gains from Johnson and a 34-yard pass from Taylor to David Ingraham with 28 seconds left. The threat ended when the Mustangs’ Wes Labbe broke through the Eagles’ line and sacked Taylor as time ran out.
While the Mustangs dominated the first half on the scoreboard, the Eagles made it interesting in the second half.
With just under seven minutes remaining in the third quarter, Windham caught another huge break on special teams when Drain attempted a hand off on a punt return, and Windham jumped on the ensuing fumble at the Mustangs’ 48-yard-line.
Taking advantage of a second life, the Eagles moved down the field, converting a huge third-and-14 with an 18-yard completion from Arthur Winship to Jake Darling. As time ran out in the third, the Eagles continued to attack the Massabesic line, driving the ball down inside the 10-yard-line.
As the fourth quarter began, the Eagles found themselves facing fourth-and-seven from the Mustangs’ 10. In spite of the pressure, Winship stepped up and drilled a quick pass to Darling in the back corner of the end zone to get the Eagles on the board for the first time. After Tyler Littlefield hit the extra point, the Eagles trailed the Mustangs 20-7 with 11:15 left in the game.
The Eagles mounted another scoring drive when Massabesic failed to convert a fourth-and-nine at their own 31, turning the ball over to the Eagles. The Eagles turned the ball over to back Jack Mallis who had several big runs before slamming up the middle for a four-yard touchdown run. Littlefield added the extra point, and it was 20-14.
However, unfortunately for the Eagles, they were unable to score again, and the Mustangs held on to win by the same 20-14 score.
The games start to count tonight (Aug, 31) as Windham opens their season on the road with a 7 p.m. game at Deering. The Eagles’ home opener is Sept. 7 with a 7 p.m. game against Bonny Eagle.
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