2024 Football, Class Nine-Player Semifinals: Fertile-Beltrami 60, LeRoy-Ostrander/Lyle/Pacelli 33
Posted: Thursday, November 14, 2024 - 7:57 PM
At a dizzying rate on Thursday, Nov. 14, Fertile-Beltrami senior running back Isaiah Wright was on the loose. Whether it was slicing through holes, dancing around defenders, bouncing off of would-be tacklers or taking off on dazzling sprints in the open field, Wright wreaked havoc on LeRoy-Ostrander/Lyle/Pacelli during the Minnesota State High School League’s Class Nine-Player semifinals at U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis.
Wright, a 6-foot, 200-pounder, rushed for 361 yards on 24 carries and scored seven touchdowns to power the Falcons (12-0) to an overwhelming 60-33 victory over LeRoy-Ostrander/Lyle/Pacelli (12-1), a team that boasted a high-octane attack of its own. He averaged 15 yards per carry with a long run of 59 yards.
In addition to accounting for 42 points on his seven touchdown runs, Wright also chipped in two two-point conversion runs. For good measure, he also had an interception, punted twice and took his turn with two kickoffs. Wright’s seven touchdowns tie him for third most in a single game in Minnesota prep football history with seven others.
Just ahead of him are Jerry Simonson of Franklin High School (in Renville County) in a game against Echo in 1966 and Cook County’s Peter Warren in a game against Grand Marais in 2012.
“I really don’t care about any individual records,” Wright told the League afterward. “All that concerns me is that each player on this team feels good about the contribution they are making toward a winning effort.”
Wright has 2,404 rushing yards and 39 touchdowns this season in putting the Falcons on the threshold of perhaps winning the first Class Nine-Player championship in program history. In 2021, the Falcons were the Class Nine-Player runner-up.
In a thrilling back-and-forth contest that featured scoring plays aplenty, the Cardinals built a 27-22 lead at the break. That advantage disappeared quickly, though, in the wake of Fertile-Beltrami’s 22-point output in the third quarter and another 16 points in the fourth quarter. Four of Wright’s touchdowns came in a span of just more than 10 minutes over the course of the third quarter and early fourth quarter.
Cam Hungerholt, the Cardinals’ dynamic senior quarterback, rushed for 155 yards and threw for another 238 yards. He ran for one TD and threw for three.
Fertile-Beltrami rolled up 551 yards of total offense while LeRoy-Ostrander/Lyle/Pacelli compiled 419.
Next up for Fertile-Beltrami is a spot in the Class Nine-Player Championship game opposite Hills-Beaver Creek on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 10 a.m.
