BIDDEFORD — Thornton Academy outscored its opponents 284-13 through its first five games, then had understandably closer games against the two teams that played for the Class A state championship last year ”“ Cheverus and Bonny Eagle. There was some sentiment among fans and “experts” that the Trojans’ eighth and final game of the season would be another blowout, as they squared off in the Battle of the Bridge rivalry game against Biddeford.

It’s understandable why some folks would predict a blowout. Last year’s 54-6 victory by the Trojans was the largest margin of victory in the 120-year, 95-game history of the rivalry. The 42-14 Thornton win the year before ”“ at Biddeford’s Waterhouse Field ”“ wasn’t competitive either.

Add to that this year’s Thornton team running over five of its seven opponents and a three-game losing streak by Biddeford, and a blowout didn’t seem too far-fetched.

The final score of Friday night’s latest installment of the rivalry ”“ and maybe the last in the series ”“ was 41-20 Thornton. The Trojans had leads of 34-7 and 41-13 after leading just 14-7 at halftime.

To some, a 21-point margin of victory is considered a blowout, especially when it was 28 points in the fourth quarter.

But watching the game, it didn’t appear as though Biddeford didn’t belong, as an inevitable drop down to Class B for the Tigers would make it seem. A 20-point third quarter by the Trojans only proved how good that team is.

For some perspective, Thornton scored 27 points in one quarter against powerhouse Cheverus, and ended up losing that game.

No, this year’s Battle of the Bridge wasn’t a blowout, and you only have to hear from those who were directly involved in the game to believe it.

“Coming over here, we knew it was going to be a tough game. They’re going to play hard,” Thornton head coach Kevin Kezal said of playing Biddeford on its home field. “I tip my cap to them; those kids played hard for Biddeford.

“Obviously it’s a typical Battle of the Bridge: two teams playing hard football.”

From the very first play of the game, the underdog Tigers proved they wouldn’t lay down, as they forced a fumble on the opening kickoff. But in a sign of how the game would play out, Biddeford couldn’t capitalize.

Friday night’s Battle came down to execution, not enrollment.

“Everyone just came out and knew how important this game was, and everyone did their job, and we kept it close in the first half,” said Biddeford senior quarterback Casey Twomey. “We were really proud of how we played. Everyone thought it was going to be a blowout, and we came out and competed.

“We knew it wasn’t going to be a blowout, because we knew we were all good enough athletes to not make it a blowout.”

In the first half, Biddeford played the kind of blue-collar football that head coach Brian Curit preaches, as the Tigers ran 38 plays to Thornton’s 16. But eight of those plays went for negative yardage, and three more went for no gain. Thirty-eight plays netted just 102 yards.

A championship-caliber Trojan squad survived a close, competitive first half ”“ which Thornton quarterback Austin McCrum said caused them to head to the locker room with their heads down despite holding the lead ”“ but the “explosive” Trojans, as Curit colored them, showed up in the third quarter.

“They really didn’t do anything that we didn’t expect,” said Curit. “I’m not sure we did what we had talked about all week.”

Curit said it’s been a long time since his team put a full, mistake-free game together, and the results point to the Tigers playing just one: a 46-0 thrashing of Noble in week three.

But the Tigers haven’t looked outmatched all year, just outplayed more times than Curit would like.

The latest, and possible last, Battle was the latest example of Biddeford falling short of a full game, but Curit said he was still proud of his team, notably some performances by seniors playing in their last Battle of the Bridge.

“That’s what we asked them to do, and we said that they’re going to remember this forever,” Curit said of his senior’s gutsy efforts. “I think some of them, they’re going to walk away and say ”˜Hey, I left everything on the field,’ and they should be very happy about it.”

While Twomey was happy with his effort, and that of his fellow seniors and teammates as a whole, he said it was “a hard pill to swallow watching them get the trophy.”

It was almost fitting that what might be the last game in the series was played at Waterhouse Field. It’s the same venue that has hosted the rivalry every other year for decades. But many of those Biddeford home games have been won by the visiting Trojans. In fact, the Tigers have won just once at home since a nine-game winning streak during the 1990s came to an end.

McCrum was just the latest TA starting quarterback to walk off the Waterhouse gridiron victorious.

“It’s awesome. It’s huge. Just to be a part of it and say I was here for the last one, and we got the W, is awesome,” said McCrum.

Curit, who has had a stake in the rivalry since he played for legendary Biddeford coach Mike Landry in the late 70s and early 80s, didn’t have much comment about the possible end to the series after Friday night’s game, as the fate of the rivalry is still to be determined and Curit also needed to “process” its possible end.

Kezal also was quick to point out that the Battle of the Bridge’s fate isn’t yet sealed.

“We’ve had some great games with them. We’ll see what happens,” said Kezal. “Obviously it’s a great rivalry. But we’ll see what happens.”

Biddeford couldn’t come away with a win in the series for the seventh time in the last eight regular-season games, but Friday night’s Battle was in fact a battle, and despite the lopsided score, provided a better taste than what the previous two installments gave.

For the Tigers, it was an effort that left their championship-winning coach “proud,” which as Curit said “is all you can ask for.”

If this was the last time these two cross-bridge rivals face off for the foreseeable future, it’s nice to know that is was a battle.

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.