WINDHAM — After making a mistake that kept his team out of the end zone, Windham’s Nick Garrison made the play that transformed his miscue into a forgotten memory.

Garrison’s fumble going into Skowhegan’s end zone ended Windham’s first drive of the game. Two plays later, Garrison picked off Skowhegan quarterback Adam Savage and went 20 yards untouched for a score – the first of four turnovers forced by the Eagles in a 21-7 Class B North win.

“I made bad play on offense with that fumble,” said Garrison, who also had five catches for 61 yards. “Then I happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

Windham improved to 6-0 and is in full control of Class B North. The loss snapped Skowhegan’s three-game winning streak and dropped the River Hawks to 3-4.

“They played very good defensively,” said Skowhegan Coach Ryan Libby. “It was extremely well-executed.”

Skowhegan’s final three drives ended in turnovers. With Windham ahead 14-7 in the first minute of the fourth quarter, Will Ledbetter’s interception gave the Eagles the ball at their own 3. From there, Ledbetter quarterbacked Windham to a 15-play, 97-yard scoring drive. Tate Chork’s 5-yard touchdown run with 4:34 to play gave the Eagles a 21-7 lead.

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Ledbetter threw for 360 yards and two touchdowns in last week’s 36-7 win over Cony, but against Skowhegan, much of Windham’s game plan centered around running backs Chork (12 carries, 50 yards) and Haddon Boyle (18 carries, 47 yards). The pass was there when the Eagles needed it, however. Ledbetter threw for 156 yards, with 83 coming on the drive that gave Windham a two-touchdown lead.

“I think they want to run the ball first, anyway, but if they get held up, they have plenty of weapons,” Libby said.

Skowhegan answered Garrison’s early touchdown with an 11-play, 63-yard scoring drive, culminating with Marcus Hampton’s 4-yard run with 4:59 to play in the first half. The drive was extended when Windham jumped offsides on fourth-and-5 at the Eagle 16, giving the River Hawks a fresh set of downs.

That was the only scoring drive for the River Hawks. Tayshawn Lindsay’s interception in the end zone squashed a Skowhegan chance with 3:51 remaining, and the teams traded fumbles on the next two possessions before the Eagles ran out the clock.

The defensive key was keeping Savage in the pocket, Garrison said. Skowhegan averaged just under 54 points per game over its three-game winning streak, with much of that offense coming through the air.

“We knew their quarterback is a slinger,” Garrison said. “I think we played well together.”

Skowhegan also was hurt by penalties. Two plays prior to Ledbetter’s interception, a long screen pass from Savage to Marcus Hampton (21 carries, 99 yards) was erased by a holding call. Instead of being just outside the Windham 10, the River Hawks were pushed back to the 41.

“Too many penalties for us,” Libby said.

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