Spuds battle back to win section semifinal 56-48 against Alexandria
October 31, 2019
The Spuds dominated the air as they battled the Cardinals to a 56-48 win during the Class 5A Section 8 semifinal football game on Oct. 26 in Alexandria.
Alexandria opened the scoring on a five-yard run into the endzone. George Nyanforh took the kickoff return for 80 yards to score Moorhead’s first touchdown and get the momentum going. Caden Triggs missed the first point after touchdown, but it was the only extra point he would miss.
In the second quarter, quarterback Trey Feeney hit Blake Walthall twice for touchdowns. With the two points after touchdowns, the Spuds were up 20-7. The Cardinals followed with three touchdowns of their own. Moorhead was unable to capitalize late in the second quarter as the stiff wind hindered play, and the Spuds ended the half with an eight-point deficit.
Moorhead came out for the third quarter and exploded as Feeney threw three touchdown passes to the Walthall brothers. Brady Walthall brought down two and Blake Walthall added another. A two-point pass conversion and two points after touchdowns were added. Alexandria added two touchdowns during the quarter to bring the score to 42-40 in Moorhead’s favor.
Fourth quarter found Feeney connecting with Blake Walthall for the fourth time on a 28-yard pass. Blake Walthall caught 15 passes for a total of 258 yards. With Moorhead up by nine points, the Spuds kept to the running game. Keenan Wendt ran for a 24-yard touchdown to give the Spuds a 56-40 lead. Alexandria used the hook and ladder play to score on an 80-yard run with a two-point conversion to shave the lead to eight points, but Moorhead was able to nab the onside kick to take control and win the game 56-48.
Feeney completed 26 of 33 attempts for a total of 401 yards passing. Brady Walthall had nine receptions to total 127 yards. Wendt was the leading rusher with 47 yards. Wyatt Gunkel had eight tackles tallied. Austin Altepeter and Jacob Wesley each added four tackles while Wendt, Hayden Netland and Jacqui Fitzpatrick each were credited with three tackles.
The Spuds will play for the section title at 7 p.m. Nov. 1 against the No. 1-seeded Bemidji at Bemidji State University.
Photo: Moorhead High’s Blake Walthall catches one of his 15 receptions and runs for one of four touchdowns during the Class 5A Section 8 semifinal football game on Oct. 26 in Alexandria. Credit: Bill Grover
Categorized under: School