Pirates Struggle on Both Sides of the Ball against Bears and Ogilvie
- newsverndalesun
- Sep 23
- 2 min read
Pirates vs. Bears
The Verndale Pirates hosted the matchup against the Bertha-Hewitt Bears on Friday, September 12. Despite a strong defensive effort in the first half, the Bears pulled away for a 30–6 victory.
The Pirates struck first in the opening quarter when Lincoln Finck powered in for a 1-yard touchdown run. The two-point attempt failed, but Verndale took a 6–0 lead. Bertha-Hewitt quickly answered with a 3-yard run by Dylan Day. The conversion failed, leaving the score tied 6–6 after the first quarter.
The game stayed even until the second half, when the Bears’ ground game began to wear down the Pirates. In the third quarter, The Bears’ Garrett Becker scored on a short touchdown run (conversion failed), followed by a 5-yard run from Bear Gage Barthel, with Becker adding the two-point conversion. Bertha-Hewitt carried a 20–6 lead into the final frame.
The Bears sealed the game in the fourth quarter. Day scored his second touchdown of the night on a 5-yard run, with a successful two-point pass, stretching the lead to 28–6. Bertha-Hewitt then added a safety to close out the 30–6 win.
Verndale finished with 98 total yards—46 rushing and 52 passing—while recording six first downs and five penalties for 42 yards. Bertha-Hewitt’s ground game dominated with 67 rushing attempts for 353 yards, along with eight passing yards for a total of 361. The Bears also collected 19 first downs but were penalized nine times for 74 yards.
Quarterback Owen Weiher went 5-for-13 passing for 52 yards with one interception. On the ground, Hollister Heinz led the Pirates with 10 carries for 28 yards. In the passing game, Lincoln Finck caught one pass for 15 yards, Chase Jensen had one reception for 14 yards, Heinz added one catch for 10 yards, and Kyler Vertina hauled in one pass for 10 yards. Defensively, Joe Elfstrum led the Pirates with 23 tackles, while Jensen added 12, Finck recorded 10, and Heinz also contributed 10 tackles.
Despite the loss, the Pirates showed grit on defense, with Elfstrum’s 23 tackles highlighting a relentless effort. Verndale will look to regroup and rebound in their next matchup...
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