YANKTON, S.D. – The Yankton Bucks used a no-huddle offense and big plays to defeat the Sturgis Scoopers on Friday night, 48-7.
The Bucks controlled the tempo early in the first quarter, scoring first on a 20-yard touchdown run by Ethan Bradwisch. Trevor Paulsen’s extra point kick was good and Yankton led 7-0 with 8:46 left in the first.
Yankton scored again early in the second on a 38-yard touchdown pass from Rugby Ryken to Tyler Sohler to give the Bucks a 14-0 lead.
Mac Ryken picked off a pass from Scooper quarterback Owen Cass on the next series, leading to 10-play, 43-yard Yankton drive, culminating with a six-yard touchdown run by Gavin Swanson. The Bucks led 21-0 with 5:22 until halftime.
Sturgis went three-and-out on their next series and had to punt. Yankton punt returner Cody Oswald took Dom Smith’s punt 48 yards to the house, giving the Bucks a 28-0 halftime lead.
The Scoopers surprised Yankton with some trickery on the second half kickoff, recovering an onside kick to gain possession at the Yankton 40-yard line.  Four plays later, Scooper running back Konner Berndt scampered 32 yards for the Sturgis score. Smith’s extra point kick was good and Yankton led 28-7.
The Bucks poured it on the rest of the third quarter with three more touchdowns, putting the game out of reach with a 48-7 victory on Senior Night at Crane-Youngworth Field.
Sturgis finished the night with 252 total yards. The Scoopers ran the ball 28 times for 143 yards, led by Berndt with 104 yards and a touchdown. Cass was 15 for 29 passing for 109 yards. Hunter Harrison had four catches for 45 yards. Â Sturgis had three turnovers, two fumbles and an interception and five penalties for 35 yards
Yankton (4-3) had 347 yards of total offense, with 27 carries for 245 rushing yards and seven completions on 16 attempts for 102 yards. Bradwisch had nine carries for 111 yards and two scores. Sohler caught four balls for 66 yards and two touchdowns. Â Yankton had one fumble and three penalties for 30 yards.
Sturgis (1-6) plays their final home game on Friday, Oct. 15 versus St. Thomas More at Woodle Field.
