Fertile-Beltrami wins Section 6 9-Player Football Championship

The Fertile-Beltrami Falcons can now be referred to as the four-time defending section champions, as they clinched a birth in the state tournament by defeating the Greyhounds of Fosston by a score of 52-15 at Gate City Bank Field inside the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota.

1st Quarter–
Fosston started the game with the ball, and they did a great job with time of possession, taking just over 5 minutes off of the clock before Greyhound star back Ryne Duppong was able to punch it in, allowing Fosston to go up 7-0. The Falcons got the ball next for the first time, and they responded very quickly, as Jonah Harsted broke through the middle of the defensive line and took the ball 43 yards to the house. The Falcons punched in the 2 point conversion, and proceeded to take an 8-7 lead. Fosston got the ball next, and continued to milk the clock well, until they were faced with a 4th and 4 nine yards away from the end zone, and were unable to convert, Fertile got the ball back deep in their own territory and proceeded to take the ball to their own 21 before the quarter came to an end.

2nd Quarter –
The second quarter started with a bang, as after only 28 seconds, Fertile-Beltrami increased their lead as Isaiah Wright continued his legendary career as a Falcon, dashing away from the defense for a monumental 79-yard rushing touchdown. Jonah Harsted delivered on the 2 point conversion and the Falcons took a 16-7 lead. After the next Fosston drive was derailed by two costly penalties, resulting in a punt, the Falcons were able to answer once again as Isaiah Wright continued his takeover, taking this one in from 21 yards away. He completed the octopus, scoring the 2 point conversion to make it 24-7. Fosston would not go away quietly, however, and once again they did a great job of winding down the clock, wearing down the Fertile-Beltrami defense. Then, with just 32 seconds remaining in the half, Fosston QB Jakob Rudie delivered on a QB sneak from 1 yard away, and then threw a pass to Kolton Grey for the 2 point conversion, trimming the score down to 24-15, which is where it stayed as Fertile-Beltrami chose to take a knee to end the half.

3rd Quarter –
Falcons head coach Brian Nelson said during the halftime interview that his team needed to make adjustments and improve on their discipline. However, the first drive of the third quarter for them ended abruptly on an Isaiah Wright fumble, a very rare occurence. The Falcon defense, however, did a great job of stopping the Greyhounds offense, and then the message of adjustments and discipline began to hit them close to home, as Gavin Aackus completed his first pass of the game, for a 35-yard score to Bryer Strem. It then seemed like the wheels began to fall of for Fosston, as a great defensive play by the Falcons created an interception. Then, in typical Falcon Fashion, they responded quickly, with Wright scoring yet again, the third time in the game. The two-point conversion was a success, bringing Fertile-Beltrami to a 38-15 lead. Fosston tried to get something going, but after surviving two crippling penalties to get the ball inside the Falcon 40, an errant throw by Rudie resulted in an interception by Jonah Harsted, and he was able to take it 66 yards to the house, for an incredible moment for him and the team. The 2 point conversion was a success, and the Falcons took a 46-15 lead into the 4th quarter.

4th Quarter –
As the fourth quarter began, the pace began to die down a bit, and reserves began to enter in for both sides. Fosston tried one final push to get something going in the beginning of the quarter, but they were stopped on 4th down on their first drive, and were forced to punt on their second drive after continuing to move backwards. Fertile made a complete 9-man substitution a few minutes into the quarter, and the resevres proved that they could also produce, as Briley Raaen ran it in from 4 yards away. He tried to run in the 2 point conversion, but was stopped. Fosston got the ball back, but after getting across midfield, Fosston head coach Joe Woods slowed the pace down and chose to run the clock down to zeroes, and Fertile-Beltrami clinched their fourth straight section title with a 52-15 victory.

Fertile-Beltrami improves to 10-0 on the year and advances to the 9-player State Tournament either at Moorhead or Grand Rapids next week. Fosston drops to 9-1 on the year.

SCORING-
1st Quarter –
6:30 – Fosston – Ryne Duppong 5 yard run (Brydin Daniel kick)
5:03 – FB – Jonah Harstad 43 yard run (Isaiah Wright run)

2nd Quarter –
11:32 – FB – Isaiah Wright 79 yard run (Jonah Harstad run)
6:24 – FB – Isaiah Wright 21 yard run (Isaiah Wright run)
0:32 – Fosston – Jakob Rudie 1 yard run (Jakob Rudie pass to Kolten Grey)

3rd Quarter –
8:05 – FB – Gavin Aukhus 35 yard pass to Bryer Strem (run failed)
5:26 – FB – Isaiah Wright 9 yard run (Gavin Aukhus pass to Preston Hanson)
0:28 – FB – Jonah Harstad 66 yard interception return (Isaiah Wright run)

4th Quarter –
5:54 – FB – Briley Raaen 4 yard run (run failed)

INDIVIDUAL STATS

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Isaiah Wright

Manager Vincent Lansrud

A Falcon group tackle

Tyson Bohn

Bailey Raaen

The Falcon starters

Isaiah Wright

Easton Petry

Joah Harstad