(Underwood) Alex Ravlin threw a touchdown pass and ran for two more to lead Underwood past
Atlantic 39-0 in the season opener at Underwood on Friday night.
The Eagles won the opening toss, deferred to the second half, held the Trojans to a three-and-out, and scored on their opening drive. The sophomore quarterback connected with senior wideout Brayden Wollen for a 33-yard touchdown pass to give the Eagles a 6-0 lead with 8:36 to play in the first quarter. Ravlin answered the call again with 4:26 to play in the first stanza on a nine-yard run, and the Eagles flew out to a 13-0 lead.
“I liked the way we started the game,” said Underwood Head Coach Nate Mechaelsen. “I thought we started fast, and that was a point of emphasis. We have a lot of returning players on the offensive side of the ball. We wanted to come out fast and execute, and I think we did that.”
The Eagles pegged three more points on the board with Collin Brandt’s 34-yard field goal to push the lead to 16-0 after one quarter. A high snap that sailed into the end zone resulted in a safety and Scott Pearson’s pick-six gave the home team a comfortable 25-0 lead at the half.
The Trojans picked up the pace on offense in the second and third quarter, but a couple of opportunities to score in the red zone. The Eagles countered with Ravlin’s 39-yard TD run, and Hayden Goehring scored from 25-yards out to push the score to 39-0 and a running clock in the final quarter.
“I thought Underwood’s offense, defense, and kicking game was rock solid,” said Atlantic Head Coach Mike McDermott. “I thought our defense played well at times, but we have to go back to the drawing board with our offense and special teams, and look at personnel and schemes. We’re going to watch some film and get ready.”
Underwood’s defense held Atlantic to 117 yards of total offense, and -20 yards rushing. Garrett McLaren completed 6-16 passes for 82 yards. Caden Andersen was 5-10 throwing for 55-yards. Colin Mullenix caught five passes for 51 yards, Grant Sturm snagged one pass for 51 yards, and McLaren caught two passes for 20-yards.
“I was happy with our defense,” said Mechaelsen. “Coming into the season, I thought we’d have to lean on our defense with the experience we had coming back. It’s nice to get a shut-out in the season opener.”
The Eagles rolled up 345 yards of total offense, with 194 yards passing and 151 yards on the ground. Ravlin completed 21-out-of-39 passes for 194 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, and toted the ball five times for 68 yards and two touchdowns. Hayden Goehring carried the ball seven times for 62-yards and one touchdown.
Atlantic travels to Kuemper next Friday night. Underwood heads to Tri-Center.
