It's perfection for 7-0 Raptors

It was a matchup of two unbeaten teams Friday night - each with a 6-0 record - as the Carlton/Wrenshall Raptors faced the Ogilvie Lions. Only one emerged unscathed.

True to their namesake, the Raptors started fast and held on at the end to defeat the state's sixth-ranked 9-man team by a score of 34-32 at Carlton's Jim Erickson field.

In a contest which saw each team punt only once on the night, offense prevailed. With the win, the Raptors captured the first football district or conference championship in more than 40 years for both schools.

"Although it wasn't raining, the field was still soft and the wind made us run the ball," said co-head coach Jeremy Zywicki, adding that they had success running, while this past year they've had a more balanced offense. "We have a lot of weapons and our line did a great job all night long; it was a great win - not only for the team but for both communities."

Isaiah Johnson scored four rushing touchdowns on the night for the Raptors. The first score came with 3:36 remaining in the first quarter; with a Ryan Gray extra point, it was a 7-0 lead.

Less than two minutes later, Ogilvie answered right back when Brian Nelson set up the Lions with a 61-yard scamper and quarterback Brady Harlan threw the first of his five touchdown passes to Andy Berg on a 5-yard connection. The two-point conversion failed and the Raptors led 7-6 after one quarter of play.

Kaden Crane gave Carlton-Wrenshall a 14-6 lead after a 4-yard touchdown run and a Gray extra point, with 6:46 left in the first half. But Harlan led the Lions right back as they marched down the field; Harlan's second touchdown pass of the game, this time to Darrius Vanable, made it a 14-12 game at the break.

The Lions took the second-half kickoff and proceeded down the field. Harlan hit Brian Nelson with a 39-yard touchdown pass to give the Lions team its only lead of the game at 18-14.

It didn't last long.

The Raptors' Isaiah Johnson scored his second touchdown of the game with 6:44 left in the third, and gave the Raptors a lead they never relinquished again with his 4-yard score. The Lions' next drive saw the Raptor defense come up big, stopping the Lions deep in their own territory. Following a botched punt attempt, the Raptors took advantage and Johnson scored his third touchdown on a 12-yard run, which gave the Raptors a 27-18 lead after three quarters of play.

Despite trailing by 11, the state-ranked Lions never rolled over. On their first drive in the fourth quarter Harlan connected on a long touchdown pass to Andy Berg once again - this time a 38-yard scoring play, which cut the lead to one point at 27-26.

Johnson scored his fourth touchdown of the game midway through the fourth quarter following a nice drive down the field. Gray's extra point gave the Raptors the eight-point 34-26 lead.

Again the fight against the Lions was not over. Ogilvie came within two points when Harlan's fifth touchdown pass - this time to Brett Burk - cut the margin to two points with 56 seconds to play.

Following a timeout before the two-point conversion play, the Raptors coaches said they reminded the defense: "Don't get beat and put pressure as if it was a pass play," and that's exactly what the Raptors defense did. With Harlan in the pistol formation, pressure from the defense forced the college prospect out of the pocket, and he threw the pass over the head of his intended receiver, giving Carlton-Wrenshall the two-point victory.

Harlan finished 17-22 passing for 221 yards in the loss, while the Raptor offense amassed 361 yards overall with 287 coming from the rushing attack. The Raptors looked to close out the regular season a perfect 8-0 Wednesday in Babbitt against Northeast Range.

Although the Raptors played a 9-man season because those games were scheduled before the two schools decided to form a cooperative football team, Carlton-Wrenshall will play in the section 7A tournament beginning Tuesday, October 22.

"Making the jump from nine-man to 11-man for the playoffs will be a challenge," said co-head coach Jason Crane. "We have to focus on a new system both offensively and defensively, so we will be spending a lot of time during (the school break) working on those things."