Battle goes to Biddeford

BIDDEFORD — Cody Chaloult was one of the first players to hold the Battle of the Bridge trophy.

The Biddeford offensive lineman may have crossed over the bridge, transferring from Thornton Academy back to the hometown school last spring, but he was determined to bring the trophy back with him.

Mission accomplished.

After a 5-year hiatus, the trophy will return to the trophy case outside of the Tiger Gym, as the Tigers beat the Golden Trojans 27-22 in front of a crowd of 4,000 at Waterhouse Field on Friday.

“It feels awkward that I’m one of the few guys that has played on both sides of this rivalry and won on both sides,” Chaloult said. “I don’t know if it’s been done before, but it just feels awkward. I busted my butt on both sides, but the game was phenomenal. It could have gone either way. It could have come down to any play.”

Though the Tigers (7-1) take home the trophy, it may not be the last they will see the Trojans. Depending on the Crabtree Standings (which will determine playoff spots Monday) both Biddeford and Thornton (6-2) will be in the Western Class A playoffs. The Tigers will be either a No. 3 or No. 4 seed, while the Trojans will likely be a No. 6 seed, meaning the Tigers will host a playoff game next Saturday at Waterhouse, either against Thornton (in a No. 3 vs. No. 6 game) or the No. 5 seed.

Down 22-21 with four minutes remaining, the Tigers drove the ball 50 yards down the field before quarterback Tyler Audie lofted a pass to the left corner of the endzone to wide receiver D.J. Shannon.

“It was a playaction pass,” Audie said. “We faked to [fullback Nick Gagne] and their corners and safeties had come up all night and D.J. did a little stutter step and got to the outside and I just lobbed it up for him and he went up and got it. It’s a huge play for him, he had been out four or five weeks [from injury], I’m just so proud of him.”

Running a fade route, Shannon snared the ball and landed both feet inbounds in the back of the endzone for the touchdown. After a failed 2-point conversion, the Tigers held a 27-22 lead.

“I knew it was going to be close,” Shannon said. “It was a fade route to the short side of the field, too, so we knew it was going to be close.”

Audie finished 12-15 passing for 176 yards and three touchdown passes, and rushed for 60 yards on 11 carries, with a touchdown. Gagne also added 114 yards on the ground on 23 carries.

The Trojans drove 52 yards down the field to the Biddeford 20-yard line, but couldn’t score, turning the ball over on a loss of downs. Defensively, the Tigers secondary held Trojans quarterback Josh Woodward to 96 yards passing on nine completions, along with three interceptions.

With five seconds remaining, Audie took a knee and fans from the south endzone stormed the field in celebration.

“It’s unbelievable,” Audie said. “To come in here and be an underdog on our own field, you couldn’t have written it any better. But we don’t want to be satisfied because we might see these guys again next week. We just have to keep getting better and battle next week.”