From the gun the Blake Bears had their way on the ground, celebrating homecoming with a 34-13 victory over Breck at Gordy Aamoth Jr. Memorial Stadium.

The Bears didn’t need the passing game much, as senior running back Marcus Berg piled up the rushing yards and led his team to the rivalry victory.

Berg displayed great vision and balance from the get-go, taking the opening play from scrimmage 57-yards for a touchdown.

The Bears' defense added a stout effort, putting the team's offense in good field position for most of the night while limiting Breck's passing game.

Breck responded in the second half with a 13-point spurt in the third quarter, but couldn’t overcome the 27-0 halftime deficit. Berg’s four rushing touchdowns combined with a Blake pass rush that seemed to get stronger as the game continued.

Even with the help of a few Blake turnovers late in the game, the Mustangs didn’t have time to make a comeback scare.

Recap: Both teams battled turnovers throughout the game, but the Bears found a spark early and often from the running game provided by senior Marcus Berg, who ran for 229 yards and four touchdowns. Playing at home, the Blake defense added just enough pressure to hold the Breck offense to 13 points after shutting out the Mustangs in the first half. Turnovers also hampered any hope of a Breck comeback.

Key of the game: The Mustangs couldn’t make an adjustment early enough to stop Berg. Displaying great vision and balance from the get-go, he ran 57 yards for a touchdown on the opening play from scrimmage.

Quote: “We came out with intensity, we came out with heart, and we came out ready to punch them in the mouth.” — Blake running back Marcus Berg

One thing to know: Down by 21 points in the third quarter, Breck gave up a pair of sacks and punted on fourth-and-32 from the Blake 46. Before those sacks, Breck appeared to have momentum and looked poised to cut the lead to two scores.

DAVID HOUFEK