Unbeaten Vikings ‘rain’ supreme
Through lightning, rain, wind or sleet, the Minneota Vikings are hard to beat.
That should be the team's new motto since they have had two games postponed this season because of lightning, and have not allowed adverse weather conditions or even Friday the 13th to hamper their ability to reach the end zone at will.
The Class A top-ranked Vikings (7-0) thumped Lac qui Parle Valley 67-0 in a game postponed on Thursday due to lightning, then moved to the carpeted Mattke Field at Southwest Minnesota State University on Friday afternoon.
So dominant were the Vikings in this contest that they chalked up 417 total yards and held LQPV to minus-five yards of total offense and just one first down.
Seven different Minneota players scored at least one touchdown while the Vikings' defense held an opponent scoreless for the second time this season. Minneota has now outscored its seven opponents 374-67.
With the game only 20 minutes old, Minneota had already constructed a 40-0 lead in a steady rain and temperatures in the mid 40s.
“I think the weather conditions limited what LQPV could execute on offense,” said Minneota coach Chad Johnston. “They run a spread offense and always have their QB in shotgun. The weather and field conditions really put a strain on that type of offense. I felt confident that if they had to rely on just their running game, we would be able to limit their success. I just wasn’t expecting to control them to the extent we did.”
The Vikings kicked off to start the game and quickly got the ball right back when the Eagles failed to recover it deep in their own territory. From there, Ryan Meagher scored from a yard out and the rout was on.
The Eagles turned the ball over five times on four fumbles and an interception, and the Vikings scored after each miscue. Dantae Orvis, Parker Bradley, Kyson Arndt and Easton Johnston recovered fumbles. Rost had the lone interception and returned it 52 yards to set up a touchdown.
The Vikings scored five times in the opening quarter for a 33-0 lead. Meagher also had TD runs of 14 and 7 yards in the opening quarter. Max Rost scored on an eight-yard run and also caught a 16-yard TD pass from Ryan Dalager.
Minneota added two more scores in the second quarter on a 28-yard scoring aerial from Dalager to Sawyer DeSmet with 8:03 remaining in the second quarter, followed by a 46-yard run from Destin Fier with 2:11 remaining in the first half. The DeSmet touchdown was set up by an interception from Max Rost, who returned the pick 52 yards to the Eagles' 30.
The Vikings pulled their starters in the second half, but reserves did an admirable job moving the ball and putting up a defensive wall.
“It was nice to get some players off the field early because you want to stay healthy this time of year,” he said, “and you don’t need a key player getting hurt once a game gets out of control.”
Brock Fier burst through an opening and scampered 51 yards before being stopped at the Eagles' 8, then got the ensuing handoff and scored.
Kellen Bradley and Easton Johnston ran for scores of 5 and 9 yards, respectively, in the final quarter.
Minneota hits the road on Wednesday for the final regular season game against Dawson-Boyd. The Vikings will look to avenge a 22-20 loss to the Blackjacks in last year's regular-season finale.
MINNEOTA 67, LQPV 0
Lac qui Parle Valley.................................................... 0 0 0 0 - 0
Minneota....................................................................33 14 7 13 - 67
SCORING PLAYS
Min - Ryan Meagher 1 run (pass failed failed)
Min - Max Rost 8 run (run failed)
Min - Meagher 14 run (Meagher run)
Min - Rost 16 pass from Ryan Dalager (Ian Myhre kick)
Min - Meagher 7 run (Myhre kick)
Min - DeSmet 28 pass from Dalager (Myhre kick)
Min - Destin Fier 46 run (Myhre kick)
Min - Brock Fier 8 run (Myhre kick)
Min - Kellen Bradley 5 run (kick failed)
Min - Easton Johnston 9 run (Myhre kick)
TEAM STATISTICS
TOTAL PLAYS: LQPV 33, Minneota 45 ... First downs: LQPV 1, Minneota 19 ... Total Yards: LQPV (-5), Minneota 417 ... Rushing Yards: LQPV (-6), Minneota 316 ... Passing Yards: LQPV 1, Minneota 101 ... Turnovers: LQPV 5, Minneota 2 ... Penalties: LQPV 0-0, Minneota 3-10
MINNEOTA STATISTICS
PASSING (com-att-yds-td-int): Ryan Dalager 3-5-79-2-0, Brody Larson 1-1-22-0-0
RUSHING (att-yds): Ryan Meagher 12-99, Brock Fier 2-59, Destin Fier 2-56, Lucas Rybinski 2-32, Adam DeVlaeminck 2-31, Kellen Bradley 4-20, Max Rost 3-13, Easton Johnston 3-10, Ryan Dalager 2-0, Brody Larson 2-(-4).
RECEIVING (rec-yds): Max Rost 2-51, Sawyer DeSmet 1-28, Drew Lipinski 1-22
TACKLES (solo-asst-tot): Brock Fie 3-1-4, Dantae Orvis 3-1-4, Kyson Arndt 1-3-4, Drew Lipinski 2-1-3, Parker Bradley 2-1-3, Ryan Meagher 2-0-2, Sawyer Desmet 1-1-2, Eli Gruenes 1-1-2, Brody Larson 0-2-2, Ian Myhre 0-2-2, Lucas Rybinski 0-1-1, Max Rost 0-1-1, Ben Schmidt 0-1-1, Grant Anderson 0-1-1, Carson Javers 1-0-1, Adam DeVlaeminck 1-0-1, Hunter Carstensen 1-0-1, Easton Sheik 1-0-1, Tom Desmet 1-0-1
SACKS: Sawyer DeSmet 1
TACKLES FOR LOSSES: Dante Orvis 2, Ryan Meagher 1, Sawyer Desmet 1, Easton Sheik 1, Hunter Carstensen 1, Tom Desmet 1
INTERCEPTION: Max Rost 1
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Dante Orvis 1, Parker Bradley 1, Kyson Arndt 1, Easton Johnston 1
PUNT RETURN: Max Rost 1-10, Peyton Sheik 1-9