Becker beats ROCORI handily on the road in football section final rematch

COLD SPRING — Becker stays on top — for now.

After two years of losing to ROCORI in section football championships , the Bulldogs beat the Spartans by a score of 30-14 on Friday.

"Losing can be real beneficial for you in the long run," ROCORI (4-2) coach James Herberg said. "As long as guys have their nose to the grindstone. We'll find out real quickly in the next couple of weeks."

With two games left in the Minnesota high school football regular season, Becker (6-0) preserved its undefeated record and status as one of the top teams in Class 4A. Bulldog coach Dwight Lundeen said he liked what he saw in all phases Friday.

"That's probably the best team I think we've played," he said. "We'll probably see them again in Monticello in the section finals."

The Bulldogs won the game behind three receiving touchdowns from senior wideout Mitchell Soltau. Senior Isaac Daluge had Becker's first touchdown on a 29-yard rush less than three minutes into the game, but from there Soltau scored three straight.

Even with Becker missing senior running back Owen Angell from a leg injury sustained in Week 2, the game was loaded with offensive weapons on both sides. Two of Soltau's TDs were over-the-shoulder catches on deep, accurate passes from quarterbacks Sawyer Brown and Tristan Kowalkowski.

Brown, a junior, starts most of the games but playing the younger sophomore QB allows for Brown to get more snaps on defense in pass coverage. He caught an interception at the end of the game to give Becker the final possession.

For his part, Kowalkowski played like a veteran, dropping passes in the bucket downfield and making reads to ditch the pocket for yards on the ground.

"Our OC, Mike (Lundeen), just called the right plays and they worked out well tonight," Soltau said. "Quarterbacks threw the ball well and I happened to be open."

Despite their success, Daluge said the Bulldogs are still focused on improvement. He, Brown, Angell and Soltau are four of eight senior Bulldogs who have started for three years. Soltau said because of the history, ROCORI feels good to beat.

"It's a really big opponent for us," he said. "We just wanted to come out with the right mindset and punch them in the mouth. We played well, executed."

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ROCORI's offense runs through senior Grant Tylutki, who lines up at wide receiver and in the wildcat formation. Junior QB Max Fredin found Tylutki several times through the air for positive gains and the senior rushed mostly successfully with a direct snap.

That's how the Spartans got their first score — after moving down the field on their first drive, Tylutki took a shotgun snap at the 8-yard line and swept to his left and into the end zone. He also rushed for a 2-point conversion in the third quarter after senior running back Dylan Thompson pushed the ball in from the goal line.

"Tylutki is almost unstoppable," Lundeen said. "We're doubling him and we still can't get him on the ground, he's just a really good player."

ROCORI junior receiver Caleb Maddox also had a few catches for positive yards and Fredin used his legs effectively both on called runs and when the pocket broke down. But with Becker blanketing the field with good coverage, occasionally his passes were uncatchable. Some sailed yards beyond his intended receiver.

Daluge, who also plays in Becker's secondary, said his line got good penetration and that fellow backs made good tackles.

"They have a lot of athletes and they put stress on you at those athletes," Herberg said. "They have multiple receivers that can run by you, they have tough runners and their offensive line is really good. Then their defense is going to keep you out of the end zone."

Neither team had any turnovers until the interception on ROCORI's final play and there were just a couple of flags thrown on both sides. The Spartan defense just could not keep up with the Bulldogs. Both offensive lines got good pushes, but when Becker ballcarriers got into ROCORI's secondary, momentum made bringing the Bulldog down difficult. Herberg was frustrated with a few technique mistakes that included going for a pick instead of a breakup on one of the touchdown throws

"We tackled poorly," he said. "There was a couple of missed assignments, just gaps on defense. If you don't do your job, don't read your key the really good teams are going to beat you on that.'

Neither coach thinks this series between the elite 4A teams will end soon.

"I hate comparing, but last year we played this team and it was identical records," Herberg said. "They were undefeated and we were 4-1 and lost by 20. We got them in the playoffs. It's all about constant improvement."

Contact reporter Reid Glenn at rglenn@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Becker beats ROCORI handily on the road in football section final rematch