HURON Huron took a lead early in the second half, but penalties and struggling to get off the field in the second half of the game allowed the Yankton Bucks to pull away for a 41-24 victory Friday at Tiger Stadium.
The Tigers opened the game with the ball, but in a theme of the first half, Huron quarterback Anderson Porisch completed a pass to a player with Yankton across his chest, giving the Bucks the ball on Hurons 38-yard line.
The Bucks had a pair of penalties before they had an official play. After a pair of short runs by Jace Sedlacek, quarterback Tate Beste connected for a pair of passes, but they fell short of the line of gain, turning the ball over on downs to the Tigers.
Huron got eight yards on two carries from Landon Hulst. Anderson Porisch then went around end for eight yards to give Huron its first down. The Tigers stalled at that point and Porisch punted, pinning the Bucks on their own 15-yard line.
Thats when the quick-paced Buck offense went to work. Rarely using a huddle, Yankton moved quickly down the field with short passes and busting through the line with first-down runs. After Beste found Sedlacek for a nine-yard gain, they were on the Huron 20.
A penalty backed Yankton up five yards, and Huron was able to stuff up the Buck offense, but a penalty on a successful defensive stand on fourth down gave Yankton the ball on the Huron 7. Another Tiger penalty moved the ball to the 3-yard line, and Beste found Owen Eidsness in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown with 4:27 left in the first quarter. The point after kick missed, giving Yankton a 6-0 lead.
The Tigers responded immediately as Anderson Porisch connected with Mason Jurgens and Carter Porisch for a first down. Hulst then busted through the middle for 10 yards and another first down.
Oakley Anderson had a short gain on a run before Porisch found Riley Winegar for eight yards and a first down on Yanktons 26. Three straight penalties, two on Huron and one on Yankton, left the ball where it initially began. Porisch closed out the first quarter with a connection to Winegar for eight yards after an Anderson run, getting the Tigers to the Yankton 10.
Porisch ran four straight times, finally finding pay dirt on the final run. The point-after kick from Mister Min gave Huron a 7-6 lead with 10:25 left on the clock.
Unfortunately, Miles Drotzmann took the kickoff, found the sideline and sprinted 85 yards for a touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, leaving Yankton with a 12-7 lead.
Huron was intercepted on the next possession, and the Bucks returned the pick to the 24 of Huron. After pass interference got the Bucks to the 12-yard-line, Yankton had three incomplete passes, settling for a 29-yard field goal from Kevin Ortiz Alonso to make it 15-7 with 8:02 left in the first half.
A pair of short passes by Beste got Yankton a first down to the Huron 8. Tegan Lacroix finished off the drive with a short touchdown run, but again the kick was missed, making it 21-7 Yankton with 6:02 left in the half.
Huron was forced to punt and then stuffed the Bucks, forcing a turnover on downs, getting the ball back on their own 40. Hulst opened the drive with a big 14-yard run. An unsportsmanlike penalty gave the Tigers a first down at the Yankton 31. Porisch weaved through the Yankton defense for 14 yards and another first down.
Porisch found James Shoultz Jr. for a 25-yard gain down to the Yankton 3, and then Porisch went wide around the Yankton defense on a quarterback keeper for a touchdown. After the PAT by Min, Huron was down 21-14 with 20 seconds left.
With little time on the clock, the Bucks completed a pass to midfield with seven seconds left. As time ticked off, Beste threw mid-range in the formation, and Hulst picked off the ball for the Tigers, returning it 65 yards for a touchdown with the clock reading all zeroes. Min nailed the point-after kick to send the two teams to halftime knotted at 21.
Huron coach Dru Strand was very proud of his teams fight after finding themselves in an early hole.
Im proud of the kids overcoming the adversity and keeping a good attitude, Strand remarked. I think our guys really accomplished a lot. We just have to continue to lock in to figure that out.
After the Bucks punted to open the first half, Huron started on its own 21 but quickly got a big play from Anderson Porisch to Carter Porish for 55 yards to get to the Yankton 20.
Anderson Porisch would run for the first down to the Yankton 9, but the offense stalled at that point and Min kicked a 29-yard field goal to give Huron the lead at 24-21.
As they did after Hurons first score, Yankton responded quickly on a pair of passes from Beste to Haselhorst, the second one going for 55 yards and a score. The Bucks missed the point after, but held a 27-24 with 6:52 left.
The teams exchanged punts three drives in a row, but then Beste connected with Eidsness for a 24-yard and a 28-yard pass on consecutive plays, the latter getting into the end zone. The Bucks made their PAT, taking a 34-24 lead with 1:21 left in the third quarter.
The teams again traded punts, and Huron had one last shot deep in their own territory, but turned the ball over on downs on their own 32-yard line.
Yankton then just pounded the ball on the ground to wear down the clock, running eight times to get the touchdown as LaCroix followed his blockers for a four-yard score. The PAT made it 41-24, and that would be the final tally.
Yankton moves to 1-0 behind timely running from Sedlacek, who gained 57 yards on 23 carries. Beste threw for 238 yards and two touchdowns on 19 of 28 passing.
The Tigers fall to 0-1. Anderson was the standout of the game for Huron, leading the defense with 16 tackles. Hulst ran for 43 yards on eight carries. Porisch threw for 92 yards and ran for 45 yards on 15 carries, including two touchdowns.
Despite the loss, Strand saw plenty in his teams effort to encourage him moving forward.
We know as a group and as a team, we can do much better, Strand reflected. We played our hearts out tonight, though.
Huron hosts Pierre on Friday.
Yankton 6 21 34 41
Huron 0 21 24 24
Scoring summary
1st quarter
4:27 – Y – Owen Eidsness 3-yard TD catch from Tate Beste. PAT missed.
2nd quarter
10:25 – H- Anderson Porisch 2-yard TD run. Mister Min PAT good.
10:13 – Y – Miles Drotzmann 85-yard TD kickoff return. 2-point pass fails.
8:02 – Y – Kevin Ortiz Alonso 29-yard field goal.
6:02 – Y – Tegan LaCroix 2-yard TD run. PAT missed.
0:20 – H – APorisch 3-yard TD run. Min PAT.
0:00 – H – Landon Hulst 65-yard TD interception return. Min PAT.
3rd quarter
7:39 – H – Min 29-yard field goal.
6:52 – Y – Cale Haselhorst 55-yard TD catch from Beste. PAT missed.
1:21 – Y – Eidsness 28-yard TD catch from Beste. Ortiz Alonso PAT.
4th quarter
1:12 – Y – LaCroix 4-yard TD run. Ortiz Alonso PAT.
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