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Cretin grinds out win

By David La Vaque, Star Tribune, 09/09/11, 10:02PM CDT

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The Raiders moved to 2-0 with a big victory over Mounds View


Andrew Justin got sandwiched between Cretin-Derham's Cortez Tillman and Timothy McClanahan after making a catch during first half action in Mounds View. /Kyndell Harkness, Star Tribune

 As he watched the ball come his way late in the fourth quarter, Cretin-Derham Hall defensive back DJ Palmer felt the wonderful collision of preparation and opportunity.

After recognizing Mounds View’s formation, executing his assignment and reading the quarterback’s eyes, he found himself in position to make the key play in Friday’s game at Mustang Stadium.

He didn’t miss. Palmer’s interception snuffed the Mustangs’ chance to take a late lead. And one more touchdown gave the No. 3 Raiders a 21-9 victory on a night dominated by both defenses.

After the No. 10 Mustangs’ defense forced the Raiders to attempt and ultimately miss a 23-yard field goal in the fourth quarter, the offense took over from its 20 yard line trailing 14-9.

Moving 29 yards on three plays, Mounds View reached Raiders’ territory and seemed poised to carry its momentum to the end zone. Quarterback Mike Kerfeld and receiver Quinn Madsen, who hooked up for a 10-yard catch earlier in the drive, tried for another hookup. But Palmer stepped in front, knocking the ball down into his hands for the interception.

“We put our defense is tough situations all night long,” Raiders coach Mike Scanlon said. “They had to make a play to help us out, and they did.”

For the second time in as many weeks, the Raiders offense — specifically the passing game — struggled. Starting quarterback Kevin Miley completed only nine of 20 passes for 95 yards. Conor Rhoda replaced him late in the third quarter and finished 5-for-8 for 9 yards.

“We were very inconsistent,” Scanlon said. “We had opportunities to not make the game as tight we did. I put a lot of the responsibility for that on myself; I could have done a lot better job preparing them.”

Defense also set up the second of Cretin-Derham Hall’s two touchdowns in the first half. Trailing 9-7, the Raiders found themselves in the tightening grip of Mounds View’s defense. The Mustangs turned the Raiders over on downs on two consecutive possessions.

But a Mounds View fumble at its own 13 gave the Raiders a short field just before halftime. On third down, Miley found Cortez Tillman in the end zone for a 14-9 lead that Palmer eventually secured with his fourth quarter interception.

Asked if he ever made a bigger interception, Palmer replied with a grin, “That big? Never,” he said. “First time for everything.”

Play stopped for several minutes midway through the second quarter after Cretin-Derham Hall’s Reynaldo Hernandez broke his ankle blocking on a kickoff return. An ambulance took Hernandez off the field.

Mustangs savor moral victory

Going into Friday’s game against No. 3 Cretin-Derham Hall, Mounds View football coach Jim Galvin believed it wise to keep expectations reasonable.

With 20 new starters, including the entire offense, the No. 10 Mustangs were as green as their uniforms. And only once since 1974 had a Mustangs team defeated the Raiders – last season in the Class 5A state tournament quarterfinals.

Funny then, what a 21-9 loss can do for a program’s self image. Mounds View trailed 14-9 late in the game and Galvin came away impressed.

“I told you this wasn’t a measuring stick when I talked to you earlier,” Galvin said. “Well, after this game, it is kind of a measuring stick because I was worried we were going to get beat badly and I didn’t want it to bring us down. But now that we hung right with them – it doesn’t mean we’re going to win every game we’re going to play but I think we found out we’re pretty danged competitive and not a bad football team.”

The Mustangs’ second quarter fumble and a fourth quarter interception each resulted in Cretin-Derham Hall touchdowns. Galvin called both plays “correctable mistakes.”

“We’re trying to run out the clock right before halftime and we couldn’t do it,” Galvin said. “That’s probably on the coaches. I don’t know if the kids knew we were trying to run out the clock. Then we jump offside and fumble and they score on a 15-yard field.”

As for quarterback Mike Kerfeld’s interception, Galvin said the young man should have taken a more conservative approach – difficult to do considering the momentum the Mustangs were building with each successful play on a fourth quarter drive.

“I reminded him, ‘Mike, on 2nd-and-1 there, throw the ball out of bounds and be 3rd-and-1,’” Galvin said. “We just can’t throw an interception there.”

“I’m extremely proud of these kids,” Galvin continued. “There have been so many games where we’ve just been mauled by Cretin and I think our kids just battled like crazy. We were in the dang thing until the end.”

Cretin-Derham Hall coach Mike Scanlon felt equally satisfied in victory. His offense – most noticeably the passing game – struggled for the second time in as many games. But he kept sight of the bigger picture.

“This is a nice win, it really was,” Scanlon said. “Coming out here and beating these guys on their field – I’ll take it.”

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