STURGIS, SD – The Sturgis Scooper football team stopped Aberdeen Central at fourth-and-goal from the 11-yard line to beat the Golden Eagles 18-13 at Woodle Field on Saturday night in the Scooper home opener.
The Scoopers had momentum in the first half, scoring on a seven play, 75-yard drive with 4:38 left in the first quarter on a three yard plunge by running back Gunner Rohloff. The extra point kick was blocked and Sturgis led 6-0.
Aberdeen Central had the ball deep in their own territory with just over three minutes to play before halftime. The Golden Eagles threw three straight incompletions and ran very little time off the clock, allowing the Scoopers to get the ball back in good field position at the Aberdeen Central 45 yard line.
Seven plays later, Cass found Jake Vliem in the corner of the end zone with a 13-yard strike to extend the Scooper lead. The extra point kick was blocked again and Sturgis led Aberdeen Central 12-0 at the half.
After a productive first half, the Scooper offense sputtered throughout the third quarter, punting on their first two possessions. The Golden Eagles got on the scoreboard with 3:32 left in the third on a 45-yard touchdown run by Drew Salfrank. The extra point kick was good and Sturgis led 12-7.
Following a Cass interception late in the third, Aberdeen Central attempted a halfback pass, the same play Mitchell used to beat the Scoopers a week earlier. Sturgis head coach Chris Koletzky said his defensive backs were ready.
”Do you think our boys saw that in practice a little bit,” Koletzky said with a laugh. “They saw it a lot this week. The thing is, when you don’t stop that stuff it opens up a Pandora’s box of wondering when they might try that play, and it makes some of your defensive backs timid.”
Cornerback Aiden Hedderman wasn’t fooled and intercepted the football, giving the Scoopers good field position at the Aberdeen Central 34-yard line. The Scoopers turned the ball over on downs and the game headed into the fourth quarter.
Aberdeen Central scored again on a 3-yard touchdown run by Karson Carda with 5:19 left in the game to give the Golden Eagles a 13–12 lead, after the two-point conversion attempt was stopped.
The Scooper offense finally came alive late in the game as Cass threaded the needle through two defensive backs, and found Gavin Lightenberg down the left side line with a 50-yard touchdown pass. Koletzky said it was a thing of beauty.
”We saw the safety come over there, and I don’t think Owen had 2 inches to spare. (The pass) was thread right through there, it was a perfect throw.”
Aberdeen Central had a great return on the ensuing kick off, advancing the ball to the Sturgis Scooper 38-yard line. Two 15-yard penalties moved the ball back to the Golden Eagle 40, and the Aberdeen Central offense went to work.
Carda broke off a 10-yard run, before the Scooper defense tightened up. Quarterback Dustin Hermanson then found Salfrank with a 31-yard pass, moving the ball to the 6-yard line. An Aberdeen Central motion penalty moved the ball back to the 11, before a Scooper pass interference moved the ball half the distance to the goal line, back to the 6-yard line with :11 seconds left. The final two plays were chaotic as Hermanson‘s final pass was batted down by safety Cale Jolley as time expired to seal the Scooper win.
”We really measure our progress by, can we compete against East River teams,” said Koletzky “We were let down a little bit last week. Tonight, we hung in there and it was great that the boys went to work this week and got this done.“
The Scoopers (2-1) finished the game with 267 yards of offense. Sturgis had 23 carries for 78 yards and were led by Rohloff, who ran for 60 yards on 13 carries and had a touchdown. Owen Cass completed 21-of-34 passes for 189 yards and two touchdowns. Lightenberg caught six balls for 97 yards and a score. The Scoopers had two turnovers and four penalties for 35 yards.
Aberdeen Central (0-3) piled up 299 yards of total offense, 219 on the ground and 80 through the air. Carda ran the ball 26 times, gaining 161 yards and scoring a touchdown. The Golden Eagles had eight penalties for 80 yards and one turnover.
The Scoopers host Huron next Friday in their Homecoming game. Kickoff is scheduled for 6pm at Woodle Field.
