KCC Bearcats football team tear down the Northern Freeze

By Nick Johnson, Asst. Coach
KCC 46 – NF 16
The Bearcats moved to 2-0 on the season with a convincing 46-16 victory over the Northern Freeze on Friday, Sept. 6. An old-school physical battle, showcased the toughness of both teams from start to finish.
After forcing a punt on the first possession of the game, Kittson County Central jumped to an early lead on a 48-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Eli Peterson to Gavin Johnson. The extra-point kick by Dylan Huff was good, giving the Bearcats a 7-0 lead.
The Freeze responded with a scoring drive of their own. Kelby Augustine recovered a Straet Spilde fumble in the endzone, and a successful 2-point conversion on a run by quarterback Alex Bray gave the Freeze an 8-7 lead.
The Bearcats reclaimed the lead on their next possession with another touchdown pass from Peterson to Kellen Johnson, this one from 15 yards out. After a missed extra point kick the score was 13-8 Bearcats, just before the end of the first quarter.
The Bearcats took control of the game when Brody Scalese recovered a Northern Freeze fumble, tok spark another KCC scoring drive finished off by an Eli Muir 3-yard touchdown run. Ty Vig completed the 2-point conversion on a pass from Eli Peterson, building the Bearcats lead to 21-8. Ashton Knutson added a 14-yard touchdown run of his own making the KCC lead 28-8 going into the halftime break.
The Bearcats continued to extend their lead in the second half through a combination of stellar defensive play and solid offensive execution. Eli Peterson tossed 2 more touchdown passes in the third quarter.
Gavin Johnson caught a 14-yard touchdown pass, and Kellen Johnson caught an 11-yard pass of his own. The second touchdown catch of the day for each player propelled the Bearcats to a 40-8 lead.
The last score of the game for the Bearcats came on a 20-yard touchdown run by Jaxton Hemmes. The Freeze added some more points of their own thanks to a 3-yard touchdown run by Straet Spilde, bringing the game to its final score of 46-16.
The win over the Northern Freeze moves the Bearcats to 2-0 on the year. The Bearcats will look to continue their winning streak with a week 3 matchup against the Fosston Greyhounds in Fosston on Friday, Sept. 13.
Scoring Summary:
KCC 13 28 40 46
Freeze 8 8 8 16
First Quarter
KCC_E.Peterson 47-yd pass to G.Johnson (Huff kick good)
NF_Augustine fumble recovery (Bray run good)
KCC_E.Peterson 15-yd pass to K.Johnson (Huff kick no good)
Second Quarter
KCC_E.Muir 1-yard run (Peterson pass to Vig good)
KCC_Knutson 14-yd run (Huff kick good)
Third Quarter
KCC_Peterson 14-yd pass to G.Johnson (Peterson pass to Vig no good)
KCC_Peterson 11-yd pass to K.Johnson (Huff kick no good)
Fourth Quarter
KCC_Hemmes 20-yd run (Huff kick no good)
NF_Spilde 3-yd run (Hockstedler run good)

KCC Offensive Leaders
Passing_Eli Peterson: 8/10, 128 yds, 4 TDs
Rushing_Ashton Knutson: 14 att, 123 yds, 1 TD
Receiving_Gavin Johnson: 2 rec, 61 yds, 2 TD; – Kellen Johnson: 4 rec, 61 yds, 2 TD.

KCC Defensive Leaders
Brody Scalese: 6.5 tackles, 1 tfl, 1 fum rec.
Gavin Johnson: 7 tackles
Ty Vig: 7 tackles
Brock Scalese: 6 tackles, 1 tfl