OTC falls to 4-1 with 40-6 loss to Pelican Rapids
News | Published on October 4, 2022 at 2:31pm EDT | Author: Chad Koenen
0Bulldogs to travel to Staples-Motley on Friday
By Chad Koenen
Publisher
Pelican Rapids scored 26 unanswered points as they handed Otter Tail Central its first loss of the season on Friday night by a score of 40-6.
While the final score was all Pelican Rapids, OTC ran nearly twice as many plays as the Vikings and ended up with just about as many yards in total offense. The big difference in the game was a 62-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by the Vikings in the second quarter and holding OTC to just 4-13 on third downs.
The Vikings struck first in the first quarter on a 6-yard run and subsequent two-point conversion to make the score 8-0 in the first quarter. Pelican Rapids made the score 14-0 at the start of the second quarter when they recovered a fumble and returned it 62-yards for a touchdown to make the score 14-0.
The Bulldogs reached the end zone for the first time in the second quarter when Bricker Bladow scored on an 8-yard run to make the score 14-6 after a failed two-point conversion.
Not to be outdone, the Vikings made the score 20-6 at the halftime break when Peyton Blakeway found Timmy Guler for a 50-yard touchdown pass to once again make the deficit double digits, this time by a score of 20-6.
From that point on it was all Vikings as Guler scored on a pair of touchdown runs in the third quarter, from 19 and 32-yards out, while the Vikings scored on a 3-yard run in the fourth quarter to make the score 40-6 in favor of Pelican Rapids.
The loss was the first one of the season for the Bulldogs, who came into the game with a perfect 4-0 records and were ranked 10th in the state.
As a team the Bulldogs ran 72 plays on offense, compared to just 38 by the Vikings and OTC gained 322 yards of total offense. The Vikings had 374 yards of offense and had 17 first downs, despite not converting one third down attempt in the game.
OTC finished with 106 yards passing and 216 yards on the ground. They also picked up 21 first downs and went 4-13 on third down. The big difference was two untimely turnovers for OTC, compared to just one turnover for the Vikings.
Jack Mekalson went 7-16 passing for 106 yards and an interception in the loss. He also added 42 yards on the ground on 6 carries.
Bladow led the way on the ground as he rushed 21 times for 84 yards and a touchdown. Mason Hammer rushed 18 times for 60 yards, while Chris Fronning rushed 1 time for 6 yards.
Hammer was the leading receiver for the Bulldogs as he caught 3 passes for 30 yards, while Bladow caught 1 pass for 34 yards, Drew Johnson caught 1 pass for 24 yards, Mason Dalluge caught 1 pass for 9 yards and Owen Buehler caught 1 pass for 9 yards.
This week the Bulldogs will hit the road to take on the win less Staples-Motley Cardinals. The Cardinals come into the game with a record of 0-5 after losing to Wadena-Deer Creek 45-6, West Central Area 43-7, Osakis 42-0, Pillager 16-0 and Hawley 46-7.