Four in a row.
For the first time in a very long time, the Becker Bulldogs lost their fourth straight game, this time to the Willmar Cardinals Friday night on the road.
The Bulldogs started the season looking good, winning two of their first three games against Chisago Lakes, Princeton and Rocori.
However, their tailspin began Sept. 21 against Hutchinson and continued through Big Lake, Brainerd and now Willmar.
The game Friday looked promising too, when the Bulldogs lit up the scoreboard first when QB Josh Fobbe found Kevyn Vilayphanh through the air to score six points. A failed two-point conversion attempt meant the Bulldogs were up 6-0 just seven minutes into the game.
They didn’t score again until the third quarter. As a matter of fact, the game remained 6-0 through the first quarter — that’s when Becker’s fortunes turned sour.
Willmar rattled off 56 points through the next three quarters — including 35 in the second quarter — and completely manhandled the visitors in just about every area of the football game.
Four minutes into the second, Willmar scored and converted their XP. One minute later, the Cardinals scored again and were quickly up 14-6 with seven minutes left in the half.
Another quick strike two minutes later and Becker found themselves being swallowed up — losing 21-6 and trying to stem the tide.
A punt return for a TD less than two minutes later meant Willmar was up 27-6 — with time still on the clock. Sure enough, with less than a minute to go, they tallied another TD to exit the field at halftime up 35-6.
The offense for Willmar continued to do well in the second half, scoring another 21 points to put the game away. The Bulldogs showed a little life midway in the third when they scored consecutive TDs — but they continued to drain valuable extra points by not converting their extra points.
Willmar finished off the scoring in the fourth with another touchdown through the air — and from there they mercifully ran out the last eight minutes to the delight of their loyal fans.
The victory was the sixth in a row for the Cardinals, as they raised their record to 8-1. Becker is on a four-game losing streak that has brought their record down to 2-5.
Up Next
Becker hosts St. Cloud Apollo Wednesday in their final regular season game of 2018.
