Luverne junior back Brad Herman drags some Worthington defenders along with him during a run late in Friday’s Southwest Conference football game at Cardinal Field. Herman ran for a 14-yard gain during a 75-yard scoring drive late in the fourth quarter that clinched a 28-14 win for the Cardinals.By John RittenhouseA strong first half and a crucial drive in the fourth quarter gave the Luverne football team a 28-14 home victory over Worthington Friday.Luverne dominated the first half while opening a commanding 21-0 lead.Worthington rallied to score 14 points in the fourth quarter to get back into the game, but the Cardinals responded when the Trojans cut the lead to seven points with a long scoring march that iced the game for LHS.The win evened Luverne’s season record at 2-2 and gave it a 2-1 record in the Southwest Conference. Worthington slipped to 2-2 overall and 0-2 in the league.The situation grew tense when Worthington scored 14 points in a 7:06 span during the fourth quarter.Instead of being disappointed by letting Worthington back into the game, LHS rose to the challenge and mounted an impressive drive that helped keep the Cardinals 2-0 at home for the season."That was a huge drive to answer their touchdowns," said LHS coach Todd Oye. "At first we were thinking about getting a couple of first downs. Then we realized the guys wouldn’t settle for that. They wanted to poke it in."Luverne took over on its own 25-yard line after Worthington scored to make it a 21-14 game with 4:24 left to play.The Cardinals marched 75 yards in eight plays with quarterback Andy Stegemann running an option play 19 yards for a touchdown with 1:26 showing on the clock. When Adam Kurtz added the extra point, scoring was complete as Worthington was unable score the rest of the way.Although it was Stegemann who cast the decisive stone with his touchdown run, Luverne’s 75-yard drive featured runs of 16 and 17 yards by Tyler Elbers and a 14-yard run by Brad Herman.Luverne was able to run the ball at will while building a 21-0 lead in the first half.The Cardinals received the kickoff to start the game and went on a six-play, 78-yard drive capped by a 38-yard touchdown run by Elbers. Elbers, who had 201 rushing yards in the game, found the end zone at the 9:19 mark of the first quarter. Kurtz added the extra point to make it 7-0.Stegemann had a 17-yard run during the opening drive.Luverne defender Ben Cornish gave the ball back to the offense after picking off a pass to end Worthington’s first possession of the game.The LHS squad received a 38-yard run by Elbers on the second play of the ensuing series before Mark Remme scored on a 32-yard run to cap a three-play, 53-yard drive. The extra-point attempt failed, leaving the Cards with a 13-0 cushion.Luverne increased its lead to 21 points three possessions later.The Cards went on a 10-play, 80-yard drive with Elbers scoring on a five-yard run with 3:01 remaining in the first half. A Stegemann-to-Cornish conversion pass followed the touchdown.Luverne’s 80-yard march featured a 38-yard run by Elbers, a pair of 12-yard runs by Remme and an 11-yard carry by Nate Siebenahler."We were executing our offense really well in the first half and they didn’t adjust to it until halftime," Oye said. "Our line was blocking very well, and our backs did a good job. They didn’t go down with the first tackler."Worthington did make some adjustments to silence Luverne’s running game to start the second half.Worthington’s first possession ended with Luverne’s Brandon Deragisch intercepting a pass inside LHS territory, but the visitors found pay dirt the third time they owned the ball. The Trojans advanced the ball 80 yards in nine plays and scored on a one-yard run with 11:40 remaining in the fourth quarter. A failed two-point conversion attempt kept the score at 21-6.The Trojans lost the ball on downs at the LHS 27 with their next possession, but they caught a big break when a Worthington player blocked a punt moments later, giving them the ball on the LHS five.Trojan quarterback Jay Scheidt scored four plays later on a one-yard run before throwing a conversion pass to Joe Klumper to make the difference 21-14 with 4:34 left to play.Worthington, however, was unable to get any closer as Luverne put the game away with its 75-yard drive.The Cards will entertain Vermillion, S.D., for their 2003 homecoming game Friday. Vermillion is 3-0 overall and ranked second in South Dakota’s Class 11B."They have a good team," Oye said. "They have not allowed many points this season. Most of the points they have given up have come at the end of games, when the games were out of reach. The keys for us will be to execute our offense without turning the ball over and playing aggressive defense."Team statisticsLuverne: 368 rushing yards, 29 passing yards, 397 total yards, 16 first downs, eight penalties, zero turnovers.Worthington: 148 rushing yards, 120 passing yards, 268 total yards, 14 first downs, six penalties, three turnovers.Individual statisticsRushing: Elbers 21-201, Remme 12-91, Herman 3-17, Nick Heronimus 1-minus 10, Stegemann 2-35, Siebenahler 6-28.Passing: Stegemann 2-8 for 29 yards.Receiving: Cornish 1-15, Nathan Stehlik 1-14.Defense: Deragisch one interception and one fumble recovery, Cornish one interception, Jose Saravia one sack.
