A Northwoods Conference battle between the Northland Pines varsity football team and the Coleman Cougars Thursday night proved hard-fought as the Cougars used a few second-half touchdowns to outlast the Eagles on the road after the game sat at 14-13 at halftime.
After a week one win, the Eagles have now dropped two in a row to move to 1-2 on the season.
The Eagles were definitely ready to play after a short week of preparation against an always tough Coleman squad.
Northland Pines got the ball first, and a few big chunk plays opened the game and got the Eagles into Coleman territory. The Cougars held strong and forced a 33-yard field goal attempt from Tyler Vojta, who split the uprights to give the Eagles an early 3-0 advantage.
“I’m very proud of this team and how they started the game very focused. Coleman is a very good program and well coached, so I knew if we could get a jump early or hang around, that we gave ourselves a great opportunity for success,” said Northland Pines Head Coach Justin Nimsgern after the game.
Northland Pines spent the next seven minutes of the first quarter on the field defensively, but kept Coleman out of the end zone as the first quarter expired. Coleman’s Brady Charapata used his legs early in the second quarter to give Coleman a 6-3 lead after an extra point attempt was blocked by Pines senior linebacker Ethan Wirth.
On the ensuing kickoff, Northland Pines responded with a kickoff return for a touchdown to regain a 10-6 lead over the visiting Cougars. Almost nine minutes later, on another long drive that favored the run game, Coleman got the best of the Pines defense and punched in a rushing touchdown and a two-point conversion to lead 14-10 late in the first half.
Northland Pines trotted back onto the field on offense and moved the ball into Vojta territory, and Vojta was knocked through his second field goal of the night to trail 14-13 at halftime.
Coleman’s Colton Peters dominated the second half with two rushing touchdowns, and the Cougar defense shut down the Eagles’ run game, leaving them one-dimensional on offense.
“Coleman definitely came out after halftime with more energy and took a series to get the energy to swing back. We had a couple of miscues on offense and defense that ultimately stopped a drive and gave up a score,” mentioned Nimsgern.
A few nice throws and drives led by Northland Pines senior quarterback Will Dickman highlighted the second half, but a 37-yard field goal from Vojta was the only points put on the board in the second half.
“I challenged the team that we needed to minimize the penalties and mistakes this week versus a good Coleman team if we wanted to give ourselves a chance, and I believe they accomplished that,” noted Coach Nimsgern.
The Eagles had some extra time off to prepare for another Northwoods Conference opponent, Shiocton, on the road this week, Friday, Sept. 11, at 7 p.m. The Chiefs come into this game 4-0.
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