A homecoming game against Cherry that took place Friday night amid snow flurries on Littlefork-Big Falls head coach John Larson’s birthday added up to the Vikings’ first victory of the season.
L-BF, which improved to 1-5 in the Big North Conference, defeated the winless Tigers, 14-12, in what also ended up as Larson’s first victory as the Vikings’ head coach.
“It feels really nice,” Larson said. “I’m more proud of the guys. They could have easily given up this year. The effort (Friday night) really showed that they’re willing to play hard and play the four quarters that I’ve asked for all year.”
L-BF opened the game with a clock-consuming drive, in which the Vikings kept going after facing fourth down on two occasions and making the first down.
Quarterback Bryce Burmeister made the first of two touchdown runs with 3:09 left in the first quarter when he scrambled 9 yards into the end zone to give L-BF a 6-0 lead. The Vikings’ subsequent running play for the 2-point conversion was unsuccessful.
The Tigers tied the game with 11:01 to play in the first half when Jordan Parenteau scored the first of his two touchdowns on a 7-yard run.
After Cherry’s run for the two-point conversion failed, the game remained tied at 6-6 until early in the second half.
Parenteau scored on a 6-yard touchdown run with 9:28 remaining in the third quarter. The Tigers’ lead remained at 12-6 after the run for the 2-point conversion failed.
A decision by Cherry to go for a first down on a fourth-down play deep in its own territory backfired on the Tigers late in the third quarter.
L-BF punter Rylan Henrickson had pinned Cherry near the goal line on a punt that ended up on the Tigers’ 3-yard line. Cherry then ended up giving up the ball on downs on its 10-yard line.
“Our defense, I told them all game, ‘You can bend, but don’t break,’” Larson said. “That was the mentality we had right there. We gave up 7 yards on second down and stuffed them for two plays in a row on third and fourth down.”
Burmeister tied the game on a 3-yard touchdown run with 40.4 seconds left in the third quarter. Chase Ballard ran in the 2-point conversion to give the Vikings a 14-12 lead.
“It was a big pivotal point in the game right there,” Larson said. “I was just happy we were able to compose ourselves and punch it in.”
With two games remaining in the regular season prior to the playoffs, Larson said team morale is high after winning for the first time this year.
“When you lose a couple games in a row, you start second-guessing yourself,” he said. “This win shows that we’re willing to push ourselves to get better.”
L-BF will seek its second win of the year this coming Friday afternoon at Northeast Range.
Cherry 0 6 6 0 — 12
L-BF 6 0 8 0 — 14
Scoring: L-BF: Bryce Burmeister, 9-yard run (run failed); C: Jordan Parenteau, 7-yard run (run failed); C: Parenteau, 6-yard run (run failed); L-BF: Burmeister, 3-yard run (Chase Ballard run).
Rushing: L-BF: Bryce Burmeister, 9-36, 2 TDs; Rylan Henrickson, 23-53; Chase Ballard, 9-26; Quintin Smith, 4-11; Evan Wimmer, 1-3.
