Memorial, which defeated Central in last year’s Turkey Bowl, scored all its points in the first half and relied on its defense in the second half to earn the win in front of a healthy crowd on Thursday morning at Gill Stadium.

Both teams battled the steady rain, waterlogged footballs and a litany of penalties.

“I’m just really proud of the way our kids didn’t take their foot off the gas,” Crusaders coach Rob Sturgis said. “They kept battling, kept battling, even when West had a couple answers that we couldn’t quite figure out for a couple drives.”

Memorial (8-4) built its 20-8 halftime lead behind first-half rushing touchdowns from senior captains Collin Beaulieu and Mo Olanweraju.

Beaulieu, a quarterback, ran in the game’s first two touchdowns from 8 and 27 yards out. Olanweraju, a running back, rushed for a 35-yard TD run and Beaulieu then connected with junior captain Jacob Schuff for a two-point conversion pass to give the Crusaders a 20-0 advantage.

Beaulieu’s scoring run, which came with 7:15 left in the first quarter, capped a seven-play, 33-yard drive that started after Memorial senior Bory Bory intercepted a pass by West junior quarterback Gio Doria.

Olanweraju finished with a game-high 134 rushing yards on 19 carries.

West (6-5) got on the board on the final play of the first half.

Doria (7 of 21 passing, 159 yards) connected with classmate Myles Whiter for a 10-yard West touchdown on a play that started with one second remaining in the first half. Doria then hit Whiter (three receptions, 23 yards) again for the two-point conversion pass.

“I think that we felt like we were in a little bit of an offensive funk coming out of (the playoff loss to) Pelham,” second-year West coach Andrew Provencher said. “I think it was important for us to get a good drive in and to be able to turn it into points. I think everyone came into halftime feeling very confident.”

The Blue Knights forced Memorial to go three-and-out once, punt after crossing midfield and turn the ball over on downs twice over its four second-half possessions.

The Crusaders answered with stout second-half defense of their own.

West’s final possession started on Memorial’s 46-yard line with 2:09 remaining and the Crusaders leading by the final score.

After the Blue Knights advanced to the Memorial 42, Crusaders senior Brandon Weaver capped his high school career by intercepting a Doria pass to clinch the win.

West pulled within six points with 3:56 remaining, when Doria connected with Jarome Henert for a 7-yard touchdown, capping a 10-play, 62-yard drive.

“Honestly, I think our defense saved us today,” Beaulieu said, “because offensively, we need to score at least 21 points to win — that’s what we say — and we did not do that.”

The game, which marked the first-ever Turkey Bowl between West and Memorial, was the culmination of rebirth seasons for both programs.

West, which went 1-8 last year, made its first playoff appearance since 2007, falling, 35-0, to Pelham in the Division II quarterfinals.

“Our theme all year was (to) set the standard and we always told the guys that a standard is not a ceiling, it’s a floor,” Provencher said. “For us, we feel like our program’s floor is being in the playoffs, playing in Turkey Bowls. Now we want to start building the ceiling.”

Memorial, coming off a 2-8 season last season, made the playoffs for the first time since 2003, earned its first home playoff game in 21 years and its first playoff win since capturing the 1973 Division I title.

The Crusaders defeated Winnacunet, 22-13, in the first round of the Division I tournament before falling at Exeter, 33-6, in the quarterfinals.

Sturgis said the Crusaders never made it easy on themselves this fall but he was happy to see his senior class leave the legacy of being part of the first teams to win consecutive Turkey Bowls.

“I’m kind of at a loss for words with how happy I am,” Sturgis said.

ahall@unionleader.com