Orioles dominate Vermillion in 30-0 road shutout
After a sluggish opening quarter, the Lennox High School football team’s offense came alive and never looked back, getting the 30-0 win over Vermillion at the Dakota Dome on Friday, Sept. 4.
Lennox put up the first score of the game in the second quarter as Cayden Huls found Drake Mikkelsen for a 76-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion was successful, giving the Orioles an 8-0 lead, a lead they would keep heading into halftime.
The second half was all Lennox. Mikkelson scored again in the third quarter on a 41-yard pass from Huls. Once again, the two-point conversion was successful to give Lennox a 16-0 advantage.
Still in the third, Mikkelsen took his turn throwing and found Brennen Juffer for the 23-yard touchdown pass. The two-point conversion was a success, and Lennox was up 24-0.
In the fourth, Huls took the quarterback keeper running it in from six yards out to seal the 30-0 victory.
Lennox finished the night with 396 yards of offense, gaining 218 in the air and 178 on the ground. Lennox’s defense was stout, holding Vermillion to just 34 yards of offense in the game, due in large part to the pressure from Leif Karlson, who recorded six sacks in the game.
Huls finished the night with 145 yards passing, completing seven of 15 passes. Connor McCready completed six of 11 passes for 50 yards.
Mikkelsen had six catches for 163 yards. Juffer had five grabs for 33 yards, and Shayden Olean had two for 25 yards.
On the ground, Huls rushed for 79 yards on seven carries. Olean rushed for 78 yards on 16 carries. McCready had one rush for 11, and Bennett Hanssen had one rush for ten yards.
Defensively, Karlson led the way with eight tackles and six sacks. Nolyn Spielman had seven tackles; Maverick Stockwell and Preston Sandal each had three tackles. Mikkelsen also came away with an interception.
Lennox will host Tri-Valley this Friday, Sept. 11. Tri-Valley comes into the game 0-2, losing to Milbank 27-15 in the season opener and most recently to Madison, 42-7.