PHOENIX, TRAPPERS WIN UNDER FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
Class 9AA’s top-ranked team, Freeman/Marion/Freeman Academy, rolled to a 61-6 win over Gayville-Volin Friday night in Gayville while Scotland/Menno posted an impressive 62-16 win over Tripp-Delmont/Armour/Andes Central/Dakota Christian in Armour.
The Phoenix improve to 4-0 while the Trappers move to 2-2.
Both Gayville-Volin and TDA/ACDC are winless.
Phoenix score by mercy rule
Playing for the first time as Class 9AA No. 1-ranked team, Freeman/Marion/Freeman Academy was slow out of the gate, playing with little energy and giving up a 45-yard touchdown pass late in the first quarter to winless Gayville-Volin.
But the Phoenix owned the game the rest of the way, taking care of the Raiders 61-6 in a game that ended by way of the 50-point mercy rule. FMFA had the chance to finish it off at halftime after making it 54-6 on a 95-yard interception return by Easton Tschetter, but head coach Dustin Tschetter elected to kick the extra point rather than go for the two-point try that would have made it 56-6.
The game ended late in the third quarter with the Phoenix JV team on the field, when sophomore running back Axle Schultz scored from 15 yards out. It was one of four rushing touchdowns on a nine-touchdown night for the Phoenix, who also got two from the air, another on a blocked punt by Riley Tschetter and recovery by Luke Peters, another on a punt return from Karter Weber, and one from Easton Tschetter’s interception at the end of the first half.
Rushing touchdowns came from Peters — who scored on runs of 31 and 36 yards and accounted for 75 yards of FMFA’s 243 total yards on the ground — and from R. Tschetter, who scored on a 60-yard touchdown run.
R. Tschetter also threw 41-yard and 23-yard touchdown passes to Tate Sorensen and David Walter.
The Phoenix defense gave up two long pass plays that accounted for a chunk of the Raiders’ 167 yards of total offense — just seven of which came on the ground, all in the third quarter against FMFA’s second string.
Gayville-Volin committed the only penalty of the game, and the only turnover came from the Phoenix on a mishandled snap by backup quarterback Tayden Kerrigan in the third period.
The Phoenix will travel to Alcester Friday, Sept. 19 to face Alcester-Hudson — a team that is ranked No. 3 in Class 9A and has the overall lead in seed points in that division. The Cubs edged Class 9AA No. 5 Viborg-Hurley 28-26 Friday night.
A Scotland/Menno football report will be posted when stats are received.
