by Mari Radtke
A short trip to Paullina was a game-long trip to victory for the MMCRU Royals at Paullina. The Royals faced the South O’Brien Wolverines on Friday September 20 on their own turf. The lop-sided scoring began in the first quarter with a touchdown. The halftime score was 22-0. The game score settled at 44-7. The Wolverines goose-egged until the 4th.
The Royals’ pass game favored the with 8 out of 13 pass attempts successful moving the ball 131 yards through the air. Sophomore Eli Harpenau threw 11 of the passes for 114 yards and two TDs. Pass plays averaged 16.4 yards per catch. Senior Jace Colling was the target for 4 of the throws gaining 59 yards and one of the two passing TDs.
Junior Brayson Mulder led the ground game. He carried 19 of the 34 ground plays for 195 yards and 3 of the 4 rushing TDs, and 11 receiving yards. Overall Royals rushing yards moved 258 yards. The team produced an average 7.6 yards per carry agains the Wolverines’ defense. The Royals scored 4 points on two 2-point conversions and were perfect 4/4 in PAT attempts.
Senior Grant Prescott is credited with 5.5 tackles with 1 for loss. Overall the team made 55 tackles with 44 of them being the work of a solo Royal. The team produced 4 sacs. Nine of the tackles were for a Wolverine loss of yardage..
As with many sports, ball control can be a major factor in the game outcome. The Royals recovered 4 fumbles and claimed 2 interceptions. The interceptions moved them a total of 13 yards closer to the goal.
The Royals host the Sibley-Ocheyedan Generals Friday September 27.