BANGOR – Cameron Stadium has been the host to plenty of disappointment and heartbreak for the Lewiston football team in recent years.

Lewiston has watched its season come to an end in back-to-back playoff years in the Queen City.

That frustration was replaced by joy Friday night. After four straight losses and long sullen trips home, Lewiston had a reversal of fortune in a big way. Their previous near-misses were replaced by a monumental 43-20 victory.

“We did something we’ve never done before,” said coach Bill County to his excited squad following the win. “This is an unbelievable feeling. I have a list of things I want to do before I die and this was one of them.”

Lewiston (6-0) scored 28 straight points after a Bangor scoring drive to start the game. The Blue Devils then thwarted any Ram comeback hopes with solid defense in the second half.

“This is the biggest road win ever,” said Lewiston back Wesley Myers. “Since my sophomore year, we’d always come here and Bangor would just run it down our throats. I’m just happy to win.”

Lewiston couldn’t help recall the bitter defeat last year when it watched a 21-0 lead slip away. That was motivation for the Blue Devils, which piled up over 400 yards in total offense.

Myers led the attack with 250 yards on 42 carries. He also had three touchdowns. Quarterback Ronnie Turner did a nice job in the passing game, throwing for 102 yards while completing 10 of 14 passes. Receiver Tyler Lussier had six catches for 67 yards.

“The offensive line was doing a great job,” said Myers. “The kids we have in our line are young. Last year, we had them 21-0 and they came back and beat us. I just let them know we had to come out and hit them this week. They came out and did it.”

Bangor got 183 yards on 15 carries from Lonnie Hackett, who scored two touchdowns, but the Rams couldn’t halt the Lewiston offense enough to keep pace.

“They’re a better team than we are or they were tonight,” said Bangor coach Mark Hackett. “They have the best player. That’s obvious. He’s tenacious and hungry. We didn’t tackle him. They wanted it a little more.”

Both teams opened the game with lengthy drives. Bangor (2-4) marched downfield on its first possession and scored 13 plays later, capping a 56-yard drive. Adam Billings finished things off with a 17-yard scamper, zig-zagging around the right side and breaking through tackles for a 7-0 lead four minutes into the game.

Lewiston answered right back. The Blue Devils took over at the 50 and used 12 plays. Myers scored from five yards away. He then scored when Cody Dussault optioned him the ball on the conversion run for a 8-7 lead with 1:37 left in the quarter.

“That was big,” said Myers. “We knew we had to come out and do it.”

Though Bangor had four first downs on its opening possession, the Rams managed just one the rest of the half. Lewiston’s defense stymied Bangor, and the Blue Devils were able to take advantage of Ram mistakes.

A fumble at the 35 was the first key miscue. Dussault made the recovery for the Blue Devils. Myers scored five plays later from the 7. Turner’s conversion rush was stopped, but Lewiston was up 14-7 with 11:54 left in the half.

The Rams had the ball late in the half but couldn’t sustain a drive. A lengthy punt put the Blue Devils back on its own 30 with just 1:39 left. Lewiston produced four straight first downs on runs by Myers and Jeff Keene and pass plays to Lussier. The Blue Devils were at the 5 with no time outs and 39 seconds left. A motion penalty pushed them back to the 8. After an incomplete pass, Turner rolled right and found Dussault across the middle for the touchdown pass. Myers rushed the conversion for the 22-7 lead.

“We couldn’t stop them,” said Hackett. “When we did have them in a third-and-six or third-and-seven, we were so eager to stop the run, they get those easy flat passes.”

Lewiston opened the second half with a 10-play drive that carried 65 yards for a 28-7 lead. Turner rushed in from the 3. A short kickoff and a 55-yard run by Hackett brought the Rams back. Down 28-14, Bangor got the ball back and were moving on the Lewiston defense, but an interception by Keene was returned 70 yards for the touchdown for a 36-14 lead with 29 seconds left in the third quarter. Peter Blais also picked off a Bangor pass to nix a Ram possession.

“It looked like we were going to be back in the game and we threw that interception for the touchdown,” said Hackett.

Hackett added a 10-yard scoring run in the fourth, but Myers finished off his night with a rush from the 8 with 1:21 left.

“We told them when we were on the bus,” said Myers. “We told them before we left the locker room. We told them when we left practice Thursday, and we told them at halftime. This is big for me and coach and everyone else out there.”

GAME BALLS

RB Wesley Myers 42 carries 250 yards 3 touchdowns

FB Cody Dussault 1 fumble recovery, 1 touchdown reception

WR Tyler Lussier 6 receptions, 67 yards

QB Ronnie Turner 10 of 14 passing for 102 yards