Prep report: Barnum finishes regular season unbeaten
Barnum's Julian Beckstrand had himself a night in the regular season finale, as the junior running back tallied three rushing touchdowns and more than 100 yards in the 55-7 win against South Ridge on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at Barnum.
Beckstrand didn't take long to get going. On just the second play from scrimmage, the dynamic back broke loose for a 59-yard touchdown run that gave Barnum an early 7-0 advantage.
Two possessions later, Barnum added to its lead when senior Eli Gilbertson went barreling into the end zone on a 1-yard touchdown run, which gave Barnum a 14-0 lead. After another stop defensively, Beckstrand scored his second touchdown of the day on a 20-yard scamper.
The 21-0 advantage quickly ballooned in the second frame, as South Ridge struggled to move the ball and Barnum continued to drive down the field, seemingly with ease. By halftime, the Bombers had built a staggering 41-0 lead.
Barnum's varsity starters saw limited action in the second half. Their final drive culminated in a 33-yard rushing touchdown by Beckstrand, his third score of the evening to make it 48-0 in favor of the Bombers.
The 55-7 dismantling of South Ridge marked Barnum's eighth-straight victory, which cemented a flawless 8-0 regular season record. This is the second consecutive year in which Barnum has finished the regular season undefeated.
The Bombers have set their sights on playing in another Section 7AA title game this fall, but they're hoping for a different result. Last year, Barnum came up short in a 13-0 defeat at the hands of Moose Lake/Willow River.
Names and faces on the sideline may have changed since that stinging defeat last year, but Barnum is right back in the thick of things with another talented squad chasing its first state tournament berth since 2012.
Visiting Esko managed to overcome a surprisingly strong test from a Pine City squad that was 1-6 going into Wednesday's game in Pine City.
A short touchdown run from Evan Doenz gave the Dragons a 9-7 lead with 8:22 to play, but Esko used a fake reverse on the kickoff return to start the ensuing drive at the Pine City 25-yard line. On the second play of the drive, Graham Hartlieb got the edge on the left side and scored the go-ahead touchdown with just under seven minutes to play.
Esko used the field-position game to close out the contest, stopping Pine City on a fourth down at its own 36-yard line
The Agates cruised into the postseason on Wednesday night with a big win on their home field.
Two Harbors scored 52 points in the first half alone, with Zach Libal scoring rushing touchdowns from 10, 13, 70 and 5 yards out. Tate Nelson and Carter Nelson had rushing scores, while Jacob Carpenter ran for one TD and threw for another, to Tommy DeChantal.
Zach Johnson converted all eight extra-point kicks on the night and tacked on a 31-yard field goal.
The Agates finish the regular season with a 7-1 mark and are likely to have a bye into the semifinals in Section 7AAA. Hibbing (2-6) will be on the road for a tournament game on Wednesday.
The Patriots might have looked a lot like Week 6 upset victim North Branch but they didn't play like them, pulling away confidently in the second half of their regular-season finale at Noble Hall Field in Grand Rapids.
Marcus Thiel had a pair of second-quarter touchdown runs, the first a short trip off left tackle and the second a lengthy scamper of 78 yards. That made it 21-17 Patriots, and the visitors finished the half with back-to-back scores for a 34-17 advantage, then added another touchdown to put the game out of reach in the second half.
Grand Rapids goes into a likely home playoff game on Tuesday night with a 5-3 mark, while Pequot Lakes is unbeaten and will be the top seed in Section 7AAA.
The Wolverines did all the damage they needed in the early going, taking advantage of Greyhounds miscues to jump out to a 19-0 lead in the first quarter.
Beau Akerson and Levi Flatley had short touchdown runs, both coming off of Greyhounds' turnovers, while in between a Flatley run to the pylon ended up on the ground and under a Wolverine in the end zone for another score.
Connor Gustafson hit Sam Benson on a long touchdown pass as the Greyhounds tried to get back into the game in the second quarter but they fell short and will enter a road 7AAAA playoff game on Tuesday at 2-6.
Rock Ridge is 4-4 ahead of a road trip on Tuesday night in the playoff opener.
