Oct 08, 2008 - 04:05:20 CDT
Last week, New Salem-Glen Ullin football coach Steve Kleinjan said his team would need a strong running game and a solid defensive effort to defeat No. 4-ranked Beach.Those needs were met last Friday night.
Running back Nate Seeger rushed for 146 yards and three touchdowns, and the defense pitched a shutout as the Holsteins rolled to an 18-0 Class A Region 4 victory over the previously-unbeaten Buccaneers at Beach. At 3-0, New Salem-Glen Ullin is the only remaining unbeaten team in the region.
"It was a big game, and our kids responded to the challenge the way we had hoped," said Kleinjan, whose team improved to 5-1 overall after winning its fourth straight. "It was a great team effort. The defense played extremely well, and the offense did a good job controlling the ball and finishing drives."
Seeger, a junior, had another big night for the Holsteins, scoring on runs of 14, 7 and 46 yards. He scored twice in the third quarter to make it 18-0. Seeger, who carried 26 times, now has 686 yards and seven touchdowns.
"Nate's been running well all year, and he was a force that night," Kleinjan said. "But he'd be the first to give credit to the offensive line. The guys up front established themselves early. We were able to run the ball effectively and take time off the clock. That helped our defense because it kept their offense off the field."
Beach quarterback Jake Tescher, an all-stater last season, completed 15 of 21 passes for 160 yards, but couldn't lead the Buccaneers into the end zone.
"We took away the long stuff, so they went mostly with short passes," Kleinjan said. "We did a nice job tackling and keeping the yards after catch at a minimum. That was a big key."
New Salem-GU's pressure also was a key. Tescher was sacked six times, twice each by Andrew Johnson and Charles Becker.
Next up for the Holsteins is Stanley-Powers Lake Friday at Stanley. They'll host Killdeer in the regular-season finale on Oct. 17.
Three-way tie in Region 1
No. 5 Lisbon edged No. 2 Linton-HMB 7-0 last Friday to knock the Lions out of the unbeaten ranks and create a three-way tie for first place in Class A Region 1.
Lisbon, Linton-HMBand Milnor-North Sargent - a 36-0 winner over LaMoure-Litchville-Marion last Friday - are 2-1 in region play with two games remaining in the regular season.
However, the win over Linton-HMBprobably won't be enough to get the Broncos a No. 1 seed for the playoffs. If all three teams win out, then Linton-HMB would get the top seed with the point-differential tie-breaker. All three are 1-1 in head-to-head play, and Linton-HMB has the better point-differential with a plus 7. Lisbon has a minus 1, and Milnor-North Sargent a minus 6.
Head-to-head comes back into play in determining the No. 2 seed. Milnor-NS gets the nod by virtue of its 20-12 win over Lisbon on Sept. 26.
Lisbon can still get the No. 1 seed if it wins its remaining two games, and if Milnor-NS losses one of its last two.
"We're not counting on Milnor losing, so I guess we'll have to settle on being road warriors for the playoffs," Lisbon coach Bob Bubach said. "That's alright. The main thing about Friday is we showed that we can compete with, and beat Linton. I was very happy with the effort. And we managed to beat them on the road."
Bubach's defense shut out a Linton-HMB offense that had averaged more than 30 points per game.
"Linton has lots of big-play potential with (quarterback Justin) Purintun, his receivers and their running backs," Bubach said. "We took a lot of that away with good pressure and coverage. Linton hasn't been shut out in a long time (since the 2005 postseason), so what we did was quite a big deal."
The Linton-HMB defense was solid as well, allowing only a third-quarter touchdown run by Brandon Schell. The all-state running back rushed for 112 yards on 33 carries.
"We had only one sustained drive the whole night and we finished it," Bubach said. "The defense took care of the rest."
Sorensen just fine
For most of last week, Hazen quarterback Brent Sorensen was listed as doubtful for last Friday's game against Dickinson Trinity.
On Sept. 26, the junior suffered back injuries early in the third quarter of Hazen's 35-34 loss to Watford City. CAT scans revealed no damage, but a sore lower back kept Sorensen from practicing the whole week.
However, Sorensen got clearance to play on Friday afternoon, and wound up being a key player that night in the Bison's 37-22 Class AA West Region victory.
Sorensen carried 25 times for 87 yards and completed three of five passes for another 108.
"We didn't know if Brent would be available, so we got Baylee Carr ready just in case," Hazen coach Rick Philion said. "But Brent got the OK and he said he was ready to go. His lower back was still sore and he had to sit out some plays along the way, but he was in there for most of the game and just toughed it out. He did a great job and led us to a big win."
Philion didn't expect a 25-carry night from Sorensen.
"We're an option offense and Trinity did a good job taking away the pitch man, forcing Brent to keep the ball," the Hazen coach said. "Twenty-five carries isn't what we wanted for Brent, especially with his injuries and all, but he ran tough and got as much as he could."
The two teams were tied 15-15 at halftime, but the Bison scored 14 unanswered points in the third quarter to make it 29-15. Sorensen and Carr hooked up for an 81-yard TD, moments after Chris Schwarz intercepted a Trinity pass at the Hazen 2-yard line.
Later, Carr relieved Sorensen at quarterback and finished off a scoring drive with a 22-yard keeper.
After Trinity closed to within 29-22 early in the fourth quarter, the Bison wrapped it up with a 13-play, 70-yard TD drive that Sorensen capped off with a 1-yard sneak.
"Trinity had a little momentum going, and what we needed was a long, sustained drive," Philion said. "The kids responded. They took back the momentum and put the game away."
Beulah volleyball
It didn't take long for Beulah's volleyball team and its new head coach, Kevin Peterson, to get on the same page.
With about three weeks left in the regular season, the Miners have a 21-5 overall record, including a 2-1 mark in District 14 play.
"When there's a new coach, there are new styles and philosophies, but the girls have worked hard and adjusted real well," said Peterson, who came to Beulah from Enderlin. "We're happy with where we're at right now. Happy, but not satisfied, of course. We feel we can be a lot better."
Beulah has been getting solid play from hitters Erica Duewel (225 kills as of Monday), Hannah Zimmerman (218 kills, 84 total blocks), Jessie Battest (157 kills) and Kassi Eide, and setter Brenna Johansen (558 assists).
"We have a solid group of hitters who work very well together," Peterson said. "And good hitters need a good setter. Brenna is a junior who was a hitter on the JV last year. She's had some ups and downs, but overall, she's done a great job in that role."
Rose Miller leads the defense with 304 digs.
Beulah's biggest win to date is a 3-2 decision over four-time defending Region 7 champion Dickinson Trinity on Sept. 30.
Zimmerman and Duewel had 18 and 14 kills, respectively, in that one.
"That was definitely a confidence-booster for us because most of the coaches picked Trinity to win the region again," Peterson said. "We play in a very competitive region, and we feel we can be in the thick of it come tournament time."
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