Friday, EL reversed the script. The Eddies started well and improved as the night wore on to bounced back with a 42-14 win over Oxford Hills at Walton Field.

“The loss last week definitely lit a fire,” said junior Tyler Blanchard, who returned a punt for a touchdown and threw a pass for another. “Everyone wanted this, especially for our home opener, so it was a big game for us.”

After an exciting win at Bangor, EL lost at Portland, 33-0, last week. The Red Eddies were determined to produce a better performance this week in front of a home crowd.

“The kids were really motivated,” EL coach Dave Sterling said. “We had an excellent week of practice. They put in a lot of hard work. We wanted to do something a little different than the previous week. We changed a couple things during the week, and they responded very well.”

EL (2-1) played without senior Drew Lashua, who was injured in last week’s loss and is likely out for the season.

“Defensively, we stayed pretty decent,” Sterling said. “Drew is one of our best defensive players as well as being one of our best receivers. He was all-conference the last two years. To have guys step up in those positions was amazing.”

Quarterback Matt Verrill completed his first six passes. EL’s passing game went 10-for-12 for 121 yards. Verrill also scored two touchdowns. Caden Begos rushed for 105 yards on 20 carries and had a touchdown.

“We ran the ball well,” said Blanchard, who added 41 yards on 10 carries. “Matt threw the ball well. Everything just clicked.”

It was the opposite for Oxford Hills (0-3). Before the Vikings had a fourth play from scrimmage, they were already down 14-0. The deficit was 21-0 before Oxford Hills earned a first down. The Vikings were plagued by an interception, a blocked punt and a punt return for a touchdown, all of which led to Edward Little scores.

“They did a good job,” Oxford Hills coach Mark Soehren said. “They kept us between the tackles. We got down early, and it was hard to come back.”

EL started the game with a quick drive that led to a 7-0 lead on a Verrill plunge from the 2 with 8:56 left in the quarter.

“That was big,” Blanchard said. “That helped us. Right out of the gate, we punched them in the mouth and went right down the field.”

Before the Vikings had much chance to answer, Caelan Pelletier picked off an Oxford Hills pass on its third play from scrimmage. That led to a Begos score from the 2 and a 14-0 lead with 6:42 left in the first.

After the Vikings stalled on offense on its next possession, Blanchard returned the punt 65 yards for the score for a 21-0 lead with 5:32 left in the first.

“I caught the ball and saw the sideline was open,” Blanchard said. “As soon as I saw a cutback, I took it.”

Oxford Hills’ next punt also led to an Edward Little score. It was blocked and recovered by Maxx Bell, who picked it up and returned it eight yards for the score and 28-0 lead with 10:55 left in the half.

“They had a quick start,” Soehren said. “They had a good drive. We were in a hole quick. It was deflating.”

The Viking produced its best drive of the half and got one back with 8:57 left. Jacob Spinhirn carried the ball for 57 yards on the drive. Kyle Dexter finished it off from the 2. Spinhirn finished with 62 yards on 13 carries.

EL wasn’t done in the first half though. After a penalty pushed them back, the Red Eddies still scored with 1:02 remaining. Blanchard hit CJ Jipson on a 20-yard pass for a 35-7 lead at the half.

“That’s a play that Coach (Rick) Lashua has been trying to put in since Week 1,” Blanchard said. “We just put it in this week. It was fun. It felt good to end the half on a high point.”

EL made it 42-7 early in the third when Verrill scored from the 1 with 7:31 left. The Vikings added a fourth-quarter score when Tasker Winslow hit Caleb Jewell on a 21-yard pass play with 4:15 remaining. Oxford Hills finished 3-for-14 passing for 46 yards.

“The second half we came out and responded O.K.,” Soehren said. “We moved the ball a little bit. We were trying to establish some things. They did a good job of keeping things from the outside, where we had some success last game. We had some success inside, but we just couldn’t establish things.”

kmills@sunjournal.com