The Staples Motley Cardinals, undefeated in their regular season, lost out to Perham 16-14 in the Section 8-3A semifi nal game Oct. 31.

It was an ex- tremely close game between the No. 3 Cards and No. 2 Yellowjackets, with an outcome that was anyone's guess.

The Cards scored in the second quarter on a 14- yard run by Gavin Kadlec; and the two-point conversion run gave the Cards an 8-0 lead.

The Yellowjackets, however, scored before the first half ended and it was 8-8 at halftime.

After a third-quarter Perham touchdown, SM's Dylan Hales returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards for a score but the Cardinals didn't get the extra point attempt to tie the game; which ended with the Cards losing by just two points.

Coach Ryan Beachy said he was very proud of the team and their efforts at the semifinal game in Perham.

"We had a couple of injuries that night; and I'm very proud of how they responded... they continued to fight throughout the entire game," Beachy said.

The coach said he was impressed with the boys' attitudes, even when some of the calls were questionable. "The kids never acted in a negative manner," he said.

Football action Cardinal quarterback Alex Jansson tried to turn the corner on this play in the East Grand Forks playoff game Oct. 27, with team mate Jason Johnson (90) trying to run interference. (Staples World photo by Ken Klose) Reflecting on the past season, Coach Beachy said he wanted to thank the seniors, in particular, for their contributions to the team. "I have to thank the seniors for a great season leading the rest of the kids both on the field and in the classroom."

It was a great year for football, Coach Beachy said.
Results
Section 8-3A semifinals, Oct
31
SM 0 8 6 0 - 14
Perham 0 8 8 0 - 16
First quarter
Second quarter
SM-Gavin Kadlec 20 run (Kadlec
run) 3:15
P-Ben Bucholz 1 run (Ben
Waldon pass from Bucholz) :15
Third quarter
P-Chris Scheidecker 24 run
(Scheidecker run) 4:05
SM-Dylan Hales 80 kick return
(conversion failed) 3:53
Team statistics
Rushes-yards: 35-165, 38-176
Pass comp-att-int-yards: 3-14-
1-28, 17-26-0-244
Total offense: 49-193, 54-420

Individual statistics

Rushing: SM Kadlec 16-108, Blake Petrich 7-29, Alex Jansson 7-27, Brandon Wing 2-(-3), Hales 3-4; P Scheidecker 22-119, Bucholtz 14-56

Passing: SM Seth Haaland 1-24, Wing 2-4; P Charlie Schmitz 11-72, Cody Soderstrom 4-78, Scheidecker 2-15, Eric Dreyer 1-18, Waldon 3-19, Alex Phelps 2-17

Overall: SM finishes 9-1 Cardinal quarterback Alex Jansson tried to turn the corner on this play in the East Grand Forks playoff game Oct. 27, with team mate Jason Johnson (90) trying to run interference. (Staples World photo by Ken Klose)