BY BILL STEWART

Staff Writer

The high school football season is near its apex and teams from Bangor to Bath to York are sprinting toward Super Saturday later this month at Fitzpatrick Stadium, where all three state champions will be crowned.

Gardiner will meet its mirror image -- Morse -- in a Pine Tree Conference Class B semifinal game at 7 tonight at McMann Field in Bath. Winthrop, meanwhile, will also face its mirror image -- albeit from a year ago -- when it plays at Dirigo in a Campbell Conference Class C semifinal game at 1 p.m. Saturday.

The third-seeded Tigers (7-2) are trying to get back to the PTC B final for the first time since the 2007 season, which culminated with a Gold Ball. The fifth-seeded Ramblers (6-3) are trying to defend their conference championship.

Both teams face daunting tasks.

Gardiner is contending not only with a big, physical Shipbuilders team, but history as well. The Tigers have lost three straight to Morse dating to 2006. Gardiner hasn't scored against Morse since 2007.

"It's a mindset," said Gardiner coach Jim Palmer, whose team lost 7-0 to Morse in Week 2. "I don't know why. The last few years, we haven't handled them up front."

Added Morse coach Jason Libby: "We've been fortunate. All of our games have been close."

Palmer made it a point this week to remind the Tigers of their recent run-ins with the Shipbuilders.

"I've been letting the guys know that our seniors haven't beaten them," he said. "Our offense hasn't scored on them in the last two years. We're sending a message to the guys that they have to want it."

It's coming across loud and clear.

"We want to get a shot at redemption," Gardiner fullback Dalton Eldridge said. "We'll be ready to go."

Added quarterback Forrest Chadwick: "We're focused. We have to go out and play hard and play smart. But I think we're ready."

The Tigers, of course, are a much different team than the one that lost to Morse at Hoch Field earlier this fall. For starters, Alonzo Connor is now the starting tailback, and the Tigers also will have sophomore Eddie Donnell back on the line. Donnell missed the Morse game with an injury.

"When we went with Alonzo, we moved Dalton to fullback and that just made us a different team," Palmer said.

Libby acknowledged the Tigers present a challenge.

"Connor is a talented back, one of best in the league now," he said. "He won't go down on the first hit, so we're going to have to swarm to the ball and wrap him up. Chadwick is talented athlete, too. When you get into these games, athletes make plays. You can't ignore what Chadwick can do with the ball under his arm."

The same is true of Morse quarterback Mike Walton, who is also a threat to run. The Shipbuilders, also a run-first team, feature tailback Pat Wolfe, who is among the conference's rushing leaders.

"I expect it to be a physical battle," Libby said. "Both teams want to run the ball. It'll come down to who makes the fewest mistakes and who can hold on to the football. I think both teams match up well."

Last season Winthrop featured a dynamic offense and a shut-down defense, much like Dirigo does this fall. The Cougars, led by quarterback Nic Crutchfield, average a conference-best 40 points a game and allow just 12.

"We have prepared the kids for everything they do," Winthrop coach Joel Stoneton said. "We have to play a perfect game. It's definitely flipped around from a year ago. We're the underdogs now and the pressure is not there for us. I'd rather have it that way.

"We're in a position right now that nobody thought we could achieve. We've done it, but now it's time to keep going after it. We always have a shot."

Cory Harris anchors the Winthrop ground game while quarterback Travis Luce has showed steady improvement. The Ramblers are on a season-long three-game winning streak.

The teams played Sept. 11, when Dirigo rolled to a 34-8 win at Harry Maxwell Field in Winthrop.

"We are 100 percent healthy, grades are not a factor and it looks like the weather will be good," Stoneton said. "If things go our way, we're the better team. If not, they are the better team."

Bill Stewart -- 623-3811, ext. 515

bstewart@centralmaine.com