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‘The start of a new season’

Chargers hold off Giants in thriller

By Ari Selvey 5 min read

NEW ULM -- Up 20-14 with 1:41 to play in a Mid-South District, Brown Subdistrict football game against Le Sueur-Henderson, Minnesota Valley Lutheran needed just one stop to earn its first win of the season on Friday.

And as LSH quarterback Jack Thelemann's pass hit the ground 15 yards short of the end zone 101 seconds later, MVL got that win.

"We just had to keep going," MVL's Blake Sexton said. "Don't let them get in that end zone. Just one stop is all it takes, giving it all."

The victory avenged a loss from the previous season for MVL, as the Giants defeated the Chargers 26-14 last year.

"I think Le Sueur looked at the win against us last year as a stepping stone for their season," MVL head coach Jim Buboltz said. "For us, we knew that that's the kind of competition we need to beat if we want to take the next step forward. I'm very, very happy, because last week against Minneota [a 44-6 loss] we didn't compete very well. Tonight we were ready from the get-go, and I always say I can measure how we get off the bus, and I thought we were ready to go from the first snap tonight."

The win represented a step forward for the team, which is looking to turn around a 1-8 record from last season.

"It's amazing," MVL's Ben Riesgraf said. "Coming off a season where we didn't win many but we had a lot of close ones, it was nerve-wracking, but I'm so happy that we got it done. This is going to be the start of a new season, this win."

Riesgraf had a monster game on both sides of the ball, recording two touchdowns offensively while also intercepting the ball twice on defense.

"It's everything," Riesgraf said. "We all work really hard for this, and I'm really glad it paid off in the end."

Explosives were the name of the game for the Chargers, starting with a 70-yard Riesgraf rushing touchdown on MVL's first offensive snap of the the contest.

"It gets us a whole lot of energy," Sexton said. "One play can get us the whole half. We just build off of that and keep going."

Sexton had an explosive 45-yard touchdown reception of his own for MVL’s third touchdown of the game.

"I think from the big hit right away, had we not given up the kickoff return, I think we were really going at them," Buboltz said. "I thought Blake was unstoppable tonight, I thought our offensive line did a great job and all three of our running backs ran hard. Eli [Schauland] made good decisions. I didn't need it that close at the end, but boy our guys really fought until the last minute."

After Riesgraf's opening touchdown, LSH responded by taking the ensuing kickoff back to the end zone for a score of its own. The Chargers had converted on a misplaced snap on their extra point into a 2-point conversion as Tweit scrambled it in, and the Giants kicked their extra point to make it an 8-7 game. MVL's second drive was the opposite a from its first aesthetically, but both ended in Riesgraf scores as the Chargers ran the ball 16 consecutive times and Riesgraf punched it in from two yards out for a 14-7 MVL advantage. MVL's Emmanuel Edwards jumped on an LSH fumble on the next possession, but the Chargers stalled, going four and out. However, Riesgraf earned his first interception of the day six plays later, setting up MVL for a 45-yard touchdown from Schauland to Sexton, who left his defender in the dust well before the ball arrived for a 20-7 lead that the Chargers retained at halftime.

Defense reined supreme in the third quarter, with neither team adding points, though Reisgraf did earn his second interception of the game.

"A lot of bend don't break," Buboltz said. "We got them in short yardage and came up with some big plays there at the end. I'm really, really proud of the guys, they left everything out here, and it shows. Both teams fought really hard. It was a great football game."

LSH finally found the end zone again midway through the fourth quarter, stringing together six plays to go 72 yards in a drive that ended in a 12-yard rush from Thelemann to cut the lead to 20-14 with 5:43 to play. MVL drained just over three minutes off the clock on its next drive, but was forced to punt it back to the Giants with 1:41 to go. LSH managed to get into MVL territory, but a big tackle for loss by Brecken Smith on third down meant the Giants were faced with a fourth-and-15 with 28 seconds to play. After scrambling around looking for a play, Thelemann heaved the ball deep, but it ultimately landed harmlessly on the ground, giving the Chargers the win.

"It's awesome," Sexton said. "We worked so hard this game, we worked as a team all together, and we get to celebrate together and get a win at home. It's great."

MVL (1-1) travels to Pipestone Area next Friday.

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