News

Mission accomplished: Sioux advance to Dakota Bowl

By Tyler Ohmann

11/06/2012

The Westhope-Newburg-Glenburn football team made school history last Saturday with a 32-12 victory  over Langdon-Munich as the Sioux advanced to the Dakota Bowl for the first time.

The Sioux (8-4) overcame a halftime deficit for the third straight game to get revenge on the Cardinals (10-2), who beat the Sioux 42-36 in their first meeting during the regular season.

“The kids fought for 48 minutes, and that was what we kept talking about,” said Sioux head coach Tom Nesvold. “The last time we were in the end zone, it didn’t turn out for us, so we had to come back.”
“Wow, what a game, I guess it will start sinking in later,” Nesvold added.

Things were not going the Sioux’s way in the first half though, as the Cardinals’ Dalton Fetch intercepted Sioux junior quarterback Hunter Braaten and returned it 39 yards for the games first score.

Braaten answered though on defense as he scooped up a fumble and returned it nine yards for a score to avenge the interception.

However, the Cardinals hung tough and quarterback Trevor Roppel hit Dalton Fetsch for a 64-yard scored to give Langdon-Munich a 12-6 lead heading into halftime.

However, the Sioux story was similar to their previous two playoff wins as they mounted a comeback in the second half.

Senior Calder Solloway took a screen from Braaten five yards to tie the game early in the third quarter.
Later in the third junior Ethan Miller jumped a Roppel pass and returned it 49 yards for the Sioux’s second defensive touchdown and the eventual game-winning score.

Miller said the play and the game were unbelievable.

“It feels like it’s fake, like it’s a dream or something,” Miller said.

Braaten closed out the game by breaking out on the ground in the second half scoring twice in the fourth quarter to seal the Sioux win.

“They led, and you talk about Hunter too, they were spying on him, but you know they’re keying on him hard,” Nesvold said.

Nesvold too gave credit to his coaching staff, who he credits for making the right adjustments at halftime.

“We needed to run the ball better, pass block better and pick up some blitzes better, and I thought we made some nice adjustments,” Nesvold said.

Braaten was bottled up and contained in the first half, but broke out in the second half and finished with a season-high 179 yards rushing.

Braaten also was strong passing the ball, going 12-for-31 for 128 yards and a score, though Braaten did have an uncharacteristic two interceptions.

Weather was a factor in the game too as the field was muddy, slippery and snow surrounded the field.

“They were a little dinged up, but they played hard, it was a physical game,” Nesvold said. “It was tough to get traction at times.”

Senior Tyler Simpson was able to stay on his feet for a few plays leading the Sioux receiving corps with 50 yards on three grabs, including a 28-yard grab that set up a Braaten rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter.

However, the real story for the Sioux was their defense, that not only scored twice but also came up with five turnovers.

“Defensively, what a job, we only allowed two scores and one of those was an interception return,” Nesvold said. “We gave up a touchdown on a long pass, but we scored a couple on defense as well, so those canceled those ones out.”

Leading the defense was senior Devin Korynta, who had five tackles, including three for a loss and deflected a pass. Hawkin Smette was also strong on defense, coming up with five total tackles, a fumble recovery and a sack.

A big boost for the Sioux was the crowd according to Nesvold.

“All this weather and the turnout we had, I’m guessing we had as many fans as they did,” Nesvold said. “They travel well, they believe too, it’s fun times.”

The Sioux will face Hazen at 9 a.m., on Friday at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks for the opening Dakota Bowl game. The Bison upset top-ranked Stanley-Powers Lake 14-0 in the other Class A semifinal.

The Sioux played Stanley-Powers Lake early in the season, and fell to the Blue Jays 40-6. However, Nesvold believes playing them and the Class AA Bottineau Braves helped the Sioux down the road.

“We played some good competition early and I think that helped us in the long run,” Nesvold said. “We just had to get some people in the right places.”

The victory was historic for the Sioux program, and a win in the Dakota Bowl would make for a lot of happy Sioux.

“They’re happy,” Nesvold said. “We get to play football for six more days.”

Notes:

•  After 12 games this season Hunter Braaten has piled up stats on both sides of the ball. On defense Braaten has a team-bests with 127 tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, five interceptions and six deflections. Offensively Braaten has a team-best 1132 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns. Through the air Braaten is 89-for-183 for 1235 yards 11 touchdowns and six interceptions. Braaten also leads the team with 480 return yards, including a 70 yard kick return for a touchdown.
•  Senior Kodie Hancock is the Sioux's leading receiver with 24 catches for 374 yards and four touchdowns. He also has 636 yards on 101 carries and six touchdowns.