EIGHT-MAN STUNNER! Rockets Beat No. 1 Eagles
RAPID RIVER---The Rapid River Rockets football team pulled off an eight-man rarity Friday night when they hosted the top-ranked Stephenson Eagles. The Rockets pitched a shutout on defense for the entire second half in a battle of two teams with identical 6-0 records. The Rockets took a 16-14 lead into the halftime locker room, and when the game came to an end, that was still the number on the end zone scoreboard. Rapid River stayed unbeaten with another nailbiter, handing Michigan's top-ranked team its first loss of the season. Monty Glover and Jesus Becerra scored on long runs in the first half to give the Eagles a 14-8 lead. But Brent Lundquist passed 40 yards to Logan Hardwick for a touchdown to tie the game, then hit Sam Orth for the two-point conversion pass. Who knew that those two points would end up being the last points of the game? Lundquist also scored on a one-yard touchdown run, and passed to Hardwick for a two-point conversion earlier in the first half. Those points came after a long run by senior Jarrett LaCasse, who barely missed a touchdown as he went for the end zone pilon. Rapid River (7-0) hosts a desperate North Central team next Friday night for its Homecoming game. The defending state champion Jets are 4-2 and need one more win to reach the playoffs. Next Friday's game will be broadcast live on WUPF-FM (107.3) and will be streamed live on-line at www.radioresultsnetwork.com. ---Joanna Thorbahn photo |