The Breckenridge Cowboys football team ended their season on their home field with a 22-12 loss to Parkers Prairie in the Section 6A Semifinals Saturday.
The third-seeded Parkers squad was looking to avenge a 14-12 loss to Breck earlier this year, which gave the Cowboys the second seed and home-field advantage in the semis.
The Panthers came out firing and took a 15-0 lead into halftime off a pair of 39-yard scores. The first was a rushing TD by Mason Boesl on the opening drive of the game. Parkers scored through the air in the second quarter when Chavous Wentd found Nolan Steidl for the TD. The Steidl strike came one play after Boesl picked off a Cowboy pass on the first play of their drive. The Panthers also recovered a fumble in the victory.
Breckenridge got on the board with a 71-yard score from David Erlandson in the third quarter. The junior back motioned under center to catch the defense off guard for a QB sneak on a crucial fourth down in their own territory. Erlandson bounced off the pile and took it out to the left sideline for the score, picking up a block from quarterback Riley Kappes on the way to the end zone. The two-point conversion was stuffed to keep it a two-score game.
Steidl and Wendt connected for another score and Breck went into the back of the playbook for a trick play. Erlandson motioned into the backfield for a handoff going to the right side. He pulled up and dropped a dime to JD Gomez for a 72-yard score. The two-point conversion pass to the end zone was batted down to keep it a two-possession game once again.
The Panthers chewed up a bulk of the clock and when the Cowboys got the ball back they were sacked three times on their way to a turnover on downs to send the Parkers Prairie offense into the victory formation.
Parkers heads to the section championship round where they’ll face West Central Area in the Fargodome Friday. The top-seeded Knights moved on with a 42-18 win over the New York Mills Eagles.
Breckenridge ends the season with a record of 5-5.
