Raiders defeat Mesabi

BULLETIN: Beau Bellmore  of CLC (shown) was named Southern Division Player of the Week. Why? See below.
The Central Lakes College football team gave up a touchdown on the opening kickoff, but scored four straight TDs after that for a 28-14 Minnesota College Athletic Conference inter-division win over Mesabi Range Sat., Sept. 1 at Findorff Field in Brainerd. The win evens the CLC season record at 1-1 with a game at Itasca next Saturday before returning home Sept. 15. Without the services of two injured sophomores — running back Taz Seibert and linebacker Brandon Tulenchik from season-ending broken arm and hand respectively, the Raiders still managed to move the football well in the first half to take a 28-7 lead. Also absent due to injury was Beau Stough, a 270-pound freshman running back. Freshman QB Andrew Johnson scored on a pair of short runs after the offense marched to the goal line. Freshman running back Beau Bellmore, who had 200 yards in 30 carries, scored on a short run and a nifty 25-yard scamper. Andrew Leonhardt kicked four PATs. In the second half CLC and Mesabi traded miscues and wore each other down under the warm September sun. In the middle of the last quarter, Johnson threw an interception that produced Mesabi’s other TD, an 80-yard return of the errant toss. But the Raider defense held firm, stopping the Norse inside the 10 with under four minutes to play and giving the offense a chance to grind and move the ball to within the Mesabi 15, where time ran out. Images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/58518185@N04/