Fertile-Beltrami’s Everett Balstad was a one-man wrecking crew on Friday, leading the undefeated Falcons into the 9-man Prep Bowl championship with a 30-22 come-from-behind win over Hills-Beaver Creek in state semifinals at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Riding on the back of Balstad, a senior running back and linebacker, Fertile-Beltrami (13-0) erased a 14-6 halftime deficit to punch its ticket to the Prep Bowl final. 

Balstad, who had a total of 20 carries for 135 yards rushing in the game, scored four touchdowns — three rushing and one receiving — and ran in a two-point conversion for Fertile-Beltrami, accounting for 26 of the Falcons’ 30 points.

“It doesn’t even feel real to me,” Balstad said. “We had a lot to play for and wanted it really bad all season. We’re a second-half team. We never gave up and came out with the win.”

Hills-Beaver Creek (10-3) bottled up Balstad and Fertile-Beltrami in the first half, holding him to 11 yards on two carries and limiting the Falcons to two drives. But, the second half was a different story. 

“Nobody has outworked us in the second half in any game this year, we just keep going and wear teams out,” said Fertile-Beltrami head coach Brian Nelson, who is in his 27th year with the team. “Our kids stuck with the game plan and did just a tremendous job.”

Tied 22-22 with 10:18 remaining in the game, Fertile-Beltrami put together a 9-play, 62-yard drive, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run and 2-point conversion by Balstad to give the Falcons a 30-22 lead.

Fertile-Beltrami then held Hills-Beaver Creek to four plays on its next drive, turning the Patriots over on downs and holding on for the win. 

Nelson said Fertile-Beltrami is playing in honor of former team member Jude Olson, who died following an ATV accident in July 2020. 

“That’s in the back of our kids’ minds,” Nelson said. “They’re playing for Jude and playing for our community. I’m very, very proud of them.”

Hills-Beaver Creek senior running back Cole Baker had 24 carries for 124 yards and two touchdowns for the Patriots in the loss. 

The Falcons, who defeated Mountain Iron-Buhl 44-22 in the quarterfinals, will now face LeRoy-Ostrander (11-2) in the Prep Bowl at 10 a.m. on Nov. 27 at U.S. Bank Stadium. 

“It’s pretty indescribable,” Falcons senior linebacker Tyler Stuhaug said. “It’s a great feeling to know we’re coming back here for the championship. We’ll dial up a bunch of stuff and come out of here next week with the W.”