Prep report: Cromwell-Wright stumbles in state football quarters

Cromwell-Wright's state tournament experience ended in a 48-7 defeat at the hands of Fertile-Beltrami in the IX-player football quarterfinals on Thursday night at Moorhead High School.

After knocking off No. 1-ranked and previously undefeated Nevis, 20-14, in the Section 5 title game on Halloween, Cromwell-Wright punched its first ticket to the state tournament since 2018.

The Cardinals' time at the dance proved to be short-lived, as they ran into a buzzsaw. Fertile-Beltrami dominated the line of scrimmage all evening and perhaps no player benefited from winning in the trenches more than Isaiah Wright.

Fertile-Beltrami's senior running back rushed for four touchdowns and more than 250 yards, and all of his scores were 50-plus-yard strikes. He finished with scoring runs of 53, 64, 69 and 73 yards, which helped the Falcons break the game open early.

The Falcons scored touchdowns on each of their opening four possessions, which contributed to Fertile-Beltrami's 34-0 lead at halftime. Another score early in the third quarter pushed the state quarterfinal contest to running time.

Cromwell-Wright scored its lone touchdown in the fourth quarter when senior running back Brady Dahl went barreling into the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown run that made it a 48-7 game in favor of Fertile-Beltrami.

The Cardinals finish the season with a 10-2 overall record while undefeated Fertile-Beltrami (11-0) advances to the 9-player state semifinals, which are slated for 4 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 14, at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, against Hills-Beaver Creek or LeRoy-Ostrander-Lyle-Pacelli.