MINOT, N.D. - The Minot Ryan football team had state championship aspirations after winning the North Dakota Class 2A West Region title.
But those dreams were dashed Saturday in a 24-14 loss to Valley City in the state quarterfinals at Herb Parker Stadium.
Leading 16-14 with just more than a minute to play, Valley City senior quarterback Austin Svenningsen connected with senior tight end Tayler Lentz for a 33-yard touchdown on fourth-and-1 to end the Lions' season. Svenningsen had just two completions, both to Lentz.
"I'm real proud of my guys," Valley City coach Scott Roehrich said. "We're not very flashy. We have some kids that just want to work hard and get coached to be the best that they can and that's all we ask of them."
Four plays earlier, the Hi-Liners recovered a fumble by Ryan junior wide receiver Brody Bosch at midfield.
ADVERTISEMENT
Valley City ran its offense to perfection and dominated time of possession.
Valley City used 8 minutes, 44 seconds of the clock on its opening possession, driving 86 yards in 18 plays. Senior running back Shane Undem capped the drive with a 7-yard touchdown. The Hi-Liners converted the ensuing 2-point conversion to take an 8-0 lead.
"It's real tough," Ryan coach Brad Borkhuis said. "We had a lot of high expectations, we just couldn't make the play we needed when we needed it. That happens sometimes. With games like that, you just hope they aren't in the playoffs, and unfortunately this one was."
Valley City ran the ball on 64 of its 69 offensive plays, totaling 312 yards.
Senior running back Anthony Olstad carried the ball 37 times for 134 yards and a touchdown that gave the Hi-Liners a 16-7 lead in the second quarter.
"You find a play that works and you keep running it," Roehrich said. "It's not rocket science. If they can't stop it, you just keep running it. It's that simple."
Valley City advances to play Grafton in the Class 2A semifinals at 2 p.m. Saturday.
VC 8 8 0 8-24
ADVERTISEMENT
MR 7 7 0 0-14
VC-Undem 7 run (Undem run)
MR-Eggl 5 run (Schell kick)
VC-Olstad 1 run (Knutson pass from Svenningsen)
MR-Berentson 16 pass from Eggl (Schell kick)
VC-Knutson 32 pass from Svenningsen (Olstad run)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: VC, Olstad 27-134, Bruckheimer 10-68, Lindgren 7-58, Undem 20-52. MR, Fugere 19-117, Eggl 9-41, Berentson 1-7.
ADVERTISEMENT
PASSING: VC, Svenningsen 2-5-0 50 yards. MR, Eggl 10-23-0 77.
RECEIVING: VC, Knutson 2-50. MR, Berentson 3-34, Nasers 1-25, Bosch 3-17, Fugere 1-1, Magnuson 2-0.
