|
Rockets Survive Halloween Scare From Engadine
 RAPID RIVER---It was Halloween, so Friday night was a pretty good night for a scare. And in Rapid River, the top-seeded "eight-man" high school football team had to work extra hard to fight off a scare and advance to the second round of the state playoffs.  Rapid River (10-0) will host either Cedarville (8-1) or Bellaire (7-2) in next week's regional final. Those two teams play this Saturday for the right to face the Rockets. The first past of Friday's game looked like it would be a Rapid River rout. Mas0n Berglund hooked up with Michael Casey for a 52-yard youchdown pass less than four minutes into the game. Moments later, Engadine's Austin Buss caught a pass and appeared to be on his way deep into Rocket territory. But Austin Wicklund punched the ball free, forcing a fumble that Rapid River recovered, stopping an Eagle scoring threat. 
Mason Berglund post-game interview
Then just before halftime, Berglund scored on a two-yard run. Bero's two-point conversion made it a 24-0 Rapid River lead, but...not so fast!  He returned it to The House for a 75-yard score, making it a 24-6 game. The Rockets still had a minute to work with, but after one pass completion, Berglund was intercepted by Brawley. And the speedster took off, working his way up field, 73 yards, until Berglund himself caught Brawley at the Rocket 15. That ended up being huge. Engadine (5-5) ran three plays in those final few seconds, but a pass to Scout Bigger ended up two yards short of the goal line, thanks to a big Josh Parrett tackle. Engadine, however, came out with fire to start the second half. The Eagles drove 65 yards in ten plays, with Bigger scoring from six yards out. The two-point run by Brawley brought Engadine to within 24-14, with 7:39 left in the third quarter.
Steve Johnson post-game interview
Bero had 37 of those 62 yards, including the TD and two-pointer, making it a 32-14 game. But Engadine still did not go away. A 60-yard drive was completed by a remarkable play by the Eagles on 4th-and-11 at the Rocket 21. Brawley scrambled twice, then set up and threw into the corner of the end zone to Ben Wise. That TD made it 32-20.  And on the first play, Buss went in, untouched, for a score that brought the Eagles to within 32-26. The conversion run was no good. At that point, with 10:08 left in the fourth quarter, the only thing keeping Rapid River in the lead was being 4-of-4 on two-point plays. Engadine was only 1-of-4. Rapid River responded again as Berglund broke off runs of eight, 35, and 15 yards, to crack the end zone with 9:19 to play. Bero's two-point run made it 40-26. The Eagles got one first down but had to punt from near mid-field. And Rapid River put the game away with a 78-yard drive, highlighted by a 39-yard run by Berglund. The touchdown by Wicklund from seven yards out sealed the deal with 2:44 left.  
Mason Berglund to Michael Casey TD pass
Wicklund had 95 yards on 18 carries and two touchdowns. Bero contributed 75 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. For Engadine, Buss had 66 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown (plus two fumbles). Bigger had 39 yards on12 carries and a touchdown. In the air, Brawley completed eight of 19 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown. Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see videos by Nate Bellville, photos by Michelle Rubick, and radio highlights.  |
| Date | Time | Opponent | Score | Record |
8/28 |
7:00 PM |
Ewen-Trout Creek Panthers
|
26 - 0 (W)
|
1-0
|
9/5 |
7:00 PM |
at Posen Vikings
|
22 - 0 (W)
|
2-0
|
9/13 |
4:00 PM |
at Ontonagon Gladiators
|
36 - 22 (W)
|
3-0
|
9/19 |
7:00 PM |
Brimley Bays
|
60 - 0 (W)
|
4-0
|
9/26 |
7:00 PM |
Engadine Eagles
|
58 - 18 (W)
|
5-0
|
10/3 |
7:00 PM |
Cedarville Trojans
|
20 - 19 (W)
|
6-0
|
10/11 |
1:00 PM |
at Superior Central Cougars
|
42 - 8 (W)
|
7-0
|
10/17 |
7:00 PM |
at Mid Peninsula Wolverines
|
2 - 0 (W)
|
8-0
|
10/24 |
7:00 PM |
Bellaire Eagles
|
42 - 28 (W)
|
9-0
|
10/31 |
7:00 PM |
Engadine Eagles
|
46 - 26 (W)
|
10-0
|
11/7 |
7:00 PM |
Cedarville Trojans
|
0 - 28 (L)
|
10-1
|
