September 11, 2008 at 8:49 a.m.
Vikings let first win in almost two years slip through their fingertips
Vikings let first win in almost two years slip through their fingertips
That glory looked like it was in hand again after a few minutes playing against the Fridley Tigers on Friday, Sept. 5.
The Vikings took the jaunt down 35W over to the Fridley stadium with an 0-1 record, but a ton of excitement since their first game was a close loss to NSC power Chisago Lakes.
Fridley was sporting a 1-0 record, but they needed a last-second miracle pass to beat lightly-regarded Columbia Heights in their season opener.
Although Fridley shutout the Vikings 37-0 last year, the two teams were drastically different this year. Each were sporting a new set of hungry players, and each had a new head coach.
Early and often, it looked like the Vikings were going to turn the tables on Fridley and thrash them like the Tigers had done to them last year. After the Vikings kicked off, , they shut down the Fridley offense on their first drive and forced a punt.
With North Branch fans still slowly trickling into the foreign stadium on a chilly night, Chad Anderson went to work. The senior busted off long gains in the first drive and was spelled by the equally effective Zack Smith for a few runs. The drive was capped emphatically by an Anderson touchdown from six yards out.
A Brian Grand extra point put the Vikings up 7-0, and they were just beginning the first quarter party.
After a kickoff and two stout run stuffs, the Tigers were forced into a third and long from inside their own redzone. Pass rushing specialist TJ Leason trotted onto the field to seek out Fridley signal caller Ericson Saye. Leason sped around the right tackle and hit Saye's blindside just as he was letting the pass fly.
The ball fluttered in the air for what seemed like an eternity and fell right into the hands of Anderson, who also plays safety for the Vikes. Anderson sped to the outside untouched and into the endzone for a two-score lead. Grand added his second extra point for a 14-0 lead.
The defense, led by six-foot, seven-inch tackle Mike Johnson and sophomore lineback Tim Katka kept the Tigers in check for the third straight time, forcing them into a punt situation deep in their own territory. After a short kick was fair-caught at the Tigers 36-yard line, Anderson took the first run of the drive to paydirt, scoring on a 36-yard burst through the stunned Fridley defense. Another Grand boot made it 21-0 in the first eight minutes of the game. On the ensuing kickoff, Fridley fumbled the ball away and had the Vikings thinking blowout.
Fridley, however, wasn't thinking the same thing. On the Vikings first play, they fumbled it right back to the Tigers. Although Fridley's offense was starting to get into a groove, they still couldn't put any points on the board until only four minutes remained in the first half. Saye dropped back on a third down and let it fly, hitting his receiver in stride 40 yards downfield. The pass catcher was seven yards clear of any defender as he cruised for the next 30 yards on a 70-yard hookup. The kick was good, and Fridley cut the lead to 21-7.
In the second half, the Vikings kicked off again, deferring because of the heavy winds. The drive proved costly when the Tigers marched down the field on the opening drive of the second half to score their second touchdown of the game. North Branch blocked the extra point, however, and kept the Tigers down by eight at 21-13.
The Viking offense continued to run cold, though, and they couldn't string together a quality drive in the second half.
As the Fridley crowd started to get rowdy, the momentum pushed the Tigers to another touchdown, this time an 11-yard run that was set up with a long pass play into the Vikings' redzone. Saye converted the two-point play to knot the game up in the fourth quarter.
As the final stanza progressed, neither team made much headway on offense until the dramatic end.
With just under two minutes left, Fridley had moved the ball to the Viking's 20-yard line, but they faced a long fourth down play. Their kicker trotted out on the field to boot what could've been the winning field goal, but instead, he pushed it wide left and gave the Vikings their own chance to march down the field and escape with a win.
Again, the Tigers had different plans. Needing to air it out to move down the field in time to kick a field goal, North Branch looked to the passing game. But, a Fridley defender stepped in front of one of quarterback Anders Dahlberg's passes and returned it for a touchdown with just over a minute remaining. The extra point capped off 28 unanswered points by Fridley, and left the Vikings hoping they could march down the field for a touchdown in a minute.
The Vikings again had to air it out, and it ended the same, a Fridley interception that sealed the game.
Saye took a couple knees and the win had officially slipped through the Vikings fingertips.
"We just had too many bug turnovers after momentum swings," Head Coach Phil Link said. "In the second half, we just had some mental breakdowns."
Link said it wasn't anything Fridley changed in the second half that caused the Vikings problems. In fact, Link said Fridley didn't change anything, it was just mental breakdowns on his team's part and mental fatigue. "We just didn't execute or sustain drives in the second half," he said.
Although the stinging loss will stay with the team for a while, they must regroup and go back on the road again tomorrow night, Sept. 12 to play the Columbia Heights Hylanders, who also sport an 0-2 record and a last-minute loss to Fridley.
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