State title not to be for Sugarbeeters

WIBAUX — For the last three weeks, everything has gone right for the Chinook Sugarbeeters. They won three straight playoff games and were one win away from a state championship. But Saturday, Chinook simply couldn’t catch a break, and in the end, the day belonged to Wibaux.

On a cold, rainy day in Wibaux, the Longhorns forced five Chinook turnovers and proved to be the better team in every facet on their way to a 46-14 victory over the Beeters in the Class C 8-man state championship game.

The win clinched a 13-0 season for Wibaux and the school’s first 8-man state championship since 2001, ending a streak of six consecutive losses in 8-man’s biggest game. Unfortunately the Beeters had to settle for being the 8-man runner up, but even though they fell short of their ultimate goal, the season was still a memorable one.

“That’s the thing about these games, someone has to win and someone has to lose,” Chinook head coach Scott Friede said. “We don’t make excuses, that is not what we are about. We just had some things that didn’t go our way today. But I am proud of our kids. They never quit. They fought hard until the end. Today, Wibaux was just a better team than us, and you have to give them a lot of credit, they have been here a lot of times and hopefully we can get back here and do this again. Our kids have nothing to be ashamed about or hang their heads about, they had an outstanding season.”

Wibaux, determined to end its 13-year state title drought, took control of the game from the outset and grabbed a 6-0 lead less than two minutes in, when Shawn Schaefferkoetter scampered 36 yards for a touchdown.

Then, following an interception on the ensuing drive by Chinook, the Longhorns cashed in quickly on the turnover thanks to another touchdown run by Schaefferkoetter, giving Wibaux a 14-0 advantage.

By the end of the first quarter, the Longhorns had built their lead to 20-0 by way of a Colton Tousignant touchdown.

Early in the second quarter, the Beeters were looking to get back into the game, and after a 29-yard completion from Ian McIntosh to Lane Seymour, plus a 17-yard run by Gavin Gunderson, Chinook had the ball first-and-goal at the Wibaux four-yard line.

But, on the very next play, there was a missed handoff between McIntosh and Gunderson, causing a fumble that Wibaux recovered on their own five-yard line. And two plays later came the backbreaker.

Facing a second-and-eight from their own seven, Noah Schneider connected with Connor Leach on a 73-yard touchdown pass that gave the top-ranked Longhorns a 26-0 lead with 11:02 left in the second quarter, and effectively put the game out of reach.

Then, later in the second, following another fumble recovery by the Longhorns, Argus Lund scored on a 25-yard touchdown run to make the score 32-0 at the half.

Chinook simply had no answer for the Longhorn’s dominant running game as they racked up over 200 yards on the day to go along with six rushing touchdowns. Yet, the Wibaux defense, which had only allowed nine points in its previous 12 games, was just as impactful and held an explosive Chinook offense to just 14 points.

The Beeters finally found the endzone on their opening drive of the second half when McIntosh found Seymour for a 25-yard touchdown pass to trim the deficit to 32-6. But the Longhorns scored two more rushing touchdowns, one in the third quarter and one in the fourth to take a 46-6 lead and put the game away.

Chinook scored once more before the game was done, when McIntosh reached pay dirt on a four-yard touchdown run with just under three minutes left in the game, but by then the celebration had already started at Veterans Memorial Field.

“I am just so proud of these kids. It was their time, and they really stepped up today,” Wibaux head coach Jeff Bertlesen said. “It was a hard battle; Chinook played hard. I said at the beginning of the week it would come down to the line play, and I thought we won that battle, which has been our bread and butter all year. But, congratulations to Chinook, they had a great season but we finally got one again and it feels good, really good.”

Despite the loss, the Beeters finished the season with an impressive 10-3 record and their run to the championship game along with their Northern C Division championship makes the 2014 season one of the most successful in the history of Chinook football.

“It was a good run,” Seymour said. “We had fun all year. We had some ups and we had some downs, but I had the most fun I have ever had in my life this season.”

Runner-Up

Wibaux 46, Beeters 14

Chinook 0 0 6 8 — 14

Wibaux 20 12 8 6 — 46

W: Shawn Schaefferkoetter 36 run (run failed)

W: Schaefferkoetter 8 run (Conner Leach run)

W: Colton Tousignant 3 run (run failed)

W: Leach 73 pass from Noah Schneider (pass failed)

W: Tousignant 5 run (run failed)

C: Lane Seymour 25 pass from Ian McIntosh (pass failed)

W: Angus Lund 25 run (Tousignant run)

W: Tousignant 3 run (run failed)

C: McIntosh 5 run (Seymour pass from McIntosh)

More Coverage on Page B2