Hancock at Fertile-Beltrami

Recap

FB Hancock at Fertile-Beltrami

Fertile, MN – The Hancock Owls won their third straight game Friday night, and perhaps their biggest of the season, defeating Fertile-Beltrami 28-6 and spoiling the Falcons’ homecoming.

Fertile-Beltrami struck first, marching 65 yards on their opening possession to take a 6-0 lead. Hancock needed two drives to settle in, but after forcing back-to-back Falcon punts, the Owls answered with a 75-yard scoring drive. Brady Luthi (loo-thigh) connected with Cole Evink for a 14-yard touchdown, and a successful two-point conversion gave Hancock an 8-6 lead. On the very next possession, Fertile-Beltrami fumbled, setting the Owls up with excellent field position at the Falcons’ 47. Hancock methodically drained over six minutes off the clock and capped the drive with a 4-yard rushing score by Luthi, extending their lead to 16-6 at halftime with the second-half kickoff coming their way.

The Falcons caught a break early in the third quarter when Bryer Strem—who tallied 14 interceptions last season—picked off a Hancock pass. But momentum quickly shifted back, as one play later Hancock’s Winston Schafer intercepted Falcons quarterback Gavin Aakhus and returned possession to the Owls deep in Falcon territory. Hancock capitalized with a 1-yard touchdown pass from Luthi to Gunner Curfman on fourth-and-goal, stretching the lead to 22-6 with 9:20 left in the third. Fertile-Beltrami’s struggles continued when they fumbled again on the next series, and Schaefer—after carrying the ball 29 times up to that point—was rewarded with a rushing touchdown to put the Owls firmly in control.

The third quarter was disastrous for the Falcons, who ran only three plays, two of which ended in turnovers. Hancock closed out the final 6:18 off the clock to seal the 28-6 victory.

With the win, the Owls climb back to .500 at 3-3, riding a three-game winning streak into their home matchup against Rothsay next week. Fertile-Beltrami sees its own three-game streak snapped and will regroup for a home game against NCE/U-H next week(96.7 FM KKCQ).

Hancock Owls Stats

Rushing
Winston Schaefer 34 carries 142 yards TD
Brady Luthi 9 carries 45 yards TD
Nathan Kellenberger 4 carries 20 yards

Passing
Brady Luthi 6-11 96 yards 2 TD Int
Gunnar Curfman 1-1 10 yards

Receiving
Gunner Curfman 2 catches 13 yards TD
Cole Evink 1 catch 14 yards TD
Winston Schafer 1 catch 39 yards
Jett Nuest 1 catch 16 yards
Nathan Kellenberger 1 catch 14 yards
Brady Luthi 1 catch 10 yards

Fertile-Beltrami Falcons Stats

Rushing
Creed Tollefson 5 carries 18 yards (fumble lost)
Adam Kobetsky 6 carries 15 yards

Passing
Gavin Aakhus 7-13 111 yards TD Int

Receiving
Bryer Strem 5 catches 68 yards TD
Drew Gullickson 1 catch 37 yards
Adam Kobetsky 1 catch 6 yards

comments from FB coach Brian Nelson