NRHEG went three-and-out with its opening possession. The Knights answered with a 16-play drive, but were stopped on downs inside the Panther 20-yard line.
The Panther offense got untracked in the second quarter, covering 64 yards in just five plays. Quarterback Trevor Tracy found Spencer Tollefson from the 17-yard stripe for the touchdown. Tracy hooked up with Matt Jensen for the two-point play, giving NRHEF an 8-0 lead.
NRHEG also went the distance the next time it got the ball, moving 58 yards in six plays.
The Tracy-to-Tollefson connection worked again, this time from 21 yards out, leaving the Panthers with a 14-0 advantage.
The Knights cut the deficit to 14-6, going 67 yards in four plays before halftime. Matt Sheetz bulled across from two yards out for the score.
The Panthers lost the services of Nick Bartness with an ankle injury in the first half.
Tollefson recovered a LCWM fumble in the third quarter, setting the Panthers up on the Knight 21-yard line.
Four plays later, Dillon Parpart crashed into the end zone from one yard out. Tracy booted the conversion, giving NRHEG a 21-6 lead.
LCWM answered by going 61 yards in eight plays before the third quarter ended. Bryson Yackel hooked up with Nick Thul from 41 yards out for the score.
Yackel found Chuck Menne for two points and the Panther lead was down to 21-14 entering the final quarter.
Tracy capped a 14-play, 53-yard drive by sneaking the final yard, and then kicking the extra point. That stretched NRHEG’s lead to 28-14.
Back came LCWM, marching 65 yards in 10 plays. Sheetz scored his second TD of the night, this time from five yards out. Yackel found Thul for the two-point play, cutting NRHEG’s lead to six points.
The Knights went 40 yards in three plays with their final possession before time ran out.
“Tracy did a nice job managing the offense tonight,” said Stork. “Trey Hoppe stepped in for Bartness and did a great job at linebacker and fullback.”
LCWM finished with a slight edge in the statistics. The Knights ran 58 plays to total 306 yards. NRHEG had 55 plays for 279 yards. The Panthers held a 195 to 98 yards advantage on the ground, while LCWM out passed the Panthers 208 to 84.
Tollefson’s fumble recovery was the lone turnover in the game.
Parpart continued to pound the line, carrying 35 times for 147 yards. Bartness chipped in with 23 rushing yards before he was injured.
“Dillon continues to run hard,” said Stork. “Our offensive line did a nice job blocking several different defensive looks.”
Tracy completed 3-7 passes for 43 yards and a pair of scores. All three of his completions went to Tollefson. Tollefson completed his only pass, a 41-yarder to Tracy.
The Panthers travel to Maple River Friday for a first place showdown. The Eagles are 5-0 following a 35-6 rout of WEM last week.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
NRHEG 28, LCWM 22
NRHEG 0 14 7 7 28
LCWM 0 6 8 8 22
Scoring
1st Quarter: No scoring.
2nd Quarter: (NR)-Tollefson 17 yd. pass from Tracy (EP-Jensen pass from Tracy).
(NR)-Tollefson 21 yd. pass from Tracy (EP-no).
(LC)-Sheetz 2 yd. run (EP-no).
3rd Quarter: (NR)-Parpart 1 yd. run (EP-Tracy kick).
(LC)-Thul 41 yd. pass from Yackel (EP-Menne pass from Yackel).
4th Quarter: (NR)-Tracy 1 yd. run (EP-Tracy kick).
(LC)-Sheetz 5 yd. run (EP-Thul pass from Yackel).
Team Statistics
NR LCWM
First downs 17 15
Yds. Rushing 195 98
Yds. Passing 84 208
Passes 4-8 (0) 16-24 (0)
Total Yds. 55/279 58/306
Turnovers 0 0
Penalties/yds. 2/12 5/28
Individual Stats
NRHEG rushing: Parpart 35/147 (1 TD), Bartness 3/23, Tracy 6/15 (1 TD), Hoppe 3/10.
LCWM rushing: Sheetz 15/55 (2 TDs), Yackel 16/38, Scott 2/3, Davis 1/2.
NRHEG passing: Tracy 3-7 (2 TDs, 0 intcp.), 43 yds. Tollefson 1-1 (0 TDs, 0 intcp.), 41 yds.
LCWM passing: Yackel 16-24 (1 TD, 0 intcp.), 208 yds.
NRHEG receiving: Tollefson 3/43 (2 TDs), Tracy 1/41.
LCWM receiving: Menne 6/48, Thul 4/99 (1 TD), Davis 4/37, Sheetz 2/24.
NRHEG defense: Tollefson-8 tackles (1 fumble), Krell-8 (2 sacks), Parpart-7, Peterson-5, Tracy-4, Bartness-4, Hoppe-4, Weller-2, Merritt-1, Logan-1, Sletten-1, Stenzel-1.
NEXT: Friday – NRHEG vs. Maple River at Mapleton, 7 p.m.
