Fertile-Beltrami at Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal

Recap

Fertile-Beltrami at Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal

Twin Valley, MN — The Fertile-Beltrami Falcons stormed back from a double-digit second-half deficit to edge the NCE/U-H Titans 72-71 on Thursday night.

The game was a slugfest from the opening tip. NCE/U-H struck first behind the hot hand of Jace Braseth, who buried four first-half threes to spark a 16-8 lead. Fertile-Beltrami clawed back within six before unleashing a 12-0 run to surge ahead 25-19. Leveraging their noticeable size advantage, the Falcons hammered the ball inside and maintained separation, but eight first-half turnovers proved costly. The giveaways fueled a 10-0 Titans burst, sending NCE/U-H into halftime with a 34-32 edge.

The Titans’ perimeter shooting stayed sharp after the break as they continued to control the slim advantage while the Falcons searched for answers. NCE/U-H pushed Fertile-Beltrami to the brink at 66-55 with just seven minutes remaining, but the Falcons refused to fold. Possession by possession, they fed 6’8” senior Drew Gullickson, who finished with a game-high 31 points, and chipped away. A decisive 17-5 closing run vaulted Fertile-Beltrami in front for good, sealing the 72-71 victory.

With the comeback win, Fertile-Beltrami extends its winning streak to nine and improves to 11-1 on the season. The Falcons will play three times next week, beginning Tuesday on the road at Mahnomen/Waubun. The Titans fall to 6-8, having now lost two of their last three games by a combined two points. NCE/U-H will look to rebound when they host Climax/Fisher tomorrow (Friday) at 1 p.m. in Twin Valley.

Fertile-Beltrami Falcons Stats

Drew Gullickson 31 pts 14 rebs
Bryer Strem 13 pts 2 rebs
Gage Henrickson 11 pts 10 rebs
Steven Sather 7 pts 3 rebs
Caleb Sather 5 pts 1 reb
Connor Haaven 4 pts 1 reb

13/24 FT’s – 54%
36 Team Rebounds
17 Turnovers

NCE/U-H Titans Stats

Jace Braseth 21 pts 4 rebs (Six 3-pointers)
Axel Kjono 18 pts 3 rebs
Brock Fox 14 pts
Parker Anderson 8 pts 5 rebs
Bryce Brasether 7 pts 6 rebs
Gavin Fox 3 pts 2 rebs

7/14 FT’s – 50%
21 Team Rebounds
13 Turnovers