Bulldogs pitch a shutout, get a hard-fought road win

All night, it was a defensive struggle when the undefeated Becker Bulldogs took on the undefeated Holy Angels Stars. Both defenses were stout all game, but the Bulldogs' offense made just enough plays to get into the end zone twice for a 14-0 road victory.   Sometimes, a 0-0 first half can be a boring affair, but both teams moved the ball and had chances to score. Each time, the defense came up with a play to keep the offense out of the end zone.   Becker kept the ball for over half of the first quarter and ran 15 plays but came away without points. They used the running game to move into the red zone. They were faced with a fourth and short at the 19-yard line, but Cody Klatt bulled his way to a first down behind the center and left guard. However, Holy Angels' defensive back Anderson Stark deflected a route on the sidelines. That put the Bulldogs behind the chains, and on fourth down, [player_tooltip player_id='1602739' first='Sawyer' last='Brown'] completed a pass to Landen Kujawa, but the Stars' defense rallied to the ball and stopped him short of the yardage needed.   "Every inch was difficult," the only head coach in the history of the Bulldogs' program – Dwight Lundeen – said. "We ran fifteen plays and got nothing. If we have a fifteen-play series, I am elated. (Holy Angels) made some great defensive plays."   Maybe knowing points were going to be hard to come by, Holy Angels rolled the dice early, going for it on fourth and two inside their own thirty. Quarterback Damien Devine bullied his way for the first down. They would not pick up another first down, however. Kujawa came off the edge to get a hit on the quarterback. He didn't get the sack but forced a bad throw. Defensive lineman Johnathon Boecker exploded into the backfield, causing the back to adjust, and that was enough time for Kujawa to completely blow up the running back. Kujawa completed the trifecta, stuffing a draw play on third down to force a punt.   Becker attempted to convert their own fourth and short, but Stars' Jacob Szopa stuffed the run short of the sticks. Devine threw high, but Isaiah Bird-Winston leaped into the air to catch a deep crossing route for twenty yards. The catch set up the Stars' best chance for first-half points. Inside the 30-yard line, the Stars faced a fourth and six, but Devine found Bird-Winston again to move the chains. The two Stars' athletes hooked up for a third time on the drive, setting up a first and goal at the five-yard line. Then things quickly went off the rails for the Stars' offense. Back-to-back penalties turned first in goal from the five into first and goal from the 25-yard line. Well behind the sticks, Devine threw a pass into the middle of the field – right to Becker linebacker Nathan Weiss. Weiss returned the pick out near midfield.   "I saw the quarterback drop back, and I saw that inside vertical he likes to throw," Weiss said. "We watch a lot of film. It is easy when we come to the game. I just dropped back into the middle, and the ball was coming straight for me."   <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/09/Nathan-W.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1449770" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Linebacker Nathan Weiss</figcaption></figure>   Neither team threatened for the rest of the first half.   After the Bulldogs' defense forced a three-and-out, the Becker offense came out of halftime a different animal. They took over near midfield and picked up a first down. Then, the Bulldogs went into their bag of tricks. Kaden Nicolas took a pitch and started across the formation, but he pulled up behind the line of scrimmage and lofted a pass to a wide-open [player_tooltip player_id='1248645' first='Mitchell' last='Soltau'] for a 36-yard touchdown.   Down a touchdown, the Stars' offense rolled the dice on fourth down again. The gamble kept a drive alive in the first half, but not this time. Becker's Boecker stuffed the running back in the hole, giving the ball back to the offense.   "We are all together as a defense working as one," Weiss said. "Some of these teams have guys who are going to play DI football. We just have eleven solid guys who play as a unit."   The Bulldogs didn't waste any time. Isaac Daluge found room around the corner. He picked up a great downfield block by Aiden Golley and scored from 39 yards out.   Up 14-0, the Becker defense had more than enough points to put the game away. Weiss exploded into the backfield to make a tackle for loss. Carter Reckelberg made a great open-field tackle on a pass into the flat – forcing a three-and-out.   "Our kids battled hard defensively," Lundeen said. "When you shut out a team with guys that good – number 8 (quarterback Devine) and number 9 (Bird-Winston) – we knew it was going to be a battle. Our coaching staff had a tremendous game plan."   Later, Beckers' Daluge made a diving interception on an overthrown ball to end the Stars' last real chance at points. The offense ground out a couple of first downs to grind down the clock and complete the shutout 14-0.

All night, it was a defensive struggle when the undefeated Becker Bulldogs took on the undefeated Holy Angels Stars. Both defenses were stout all game, but the Bulldogs' offense made just enough plays to get into the end zone twice for a 14-0 road victory.