It was another tough week for the Vikings as they headed to St. Norbert College to take on the Green Knights. The Green Knights came onto the field intense and ready to play. They led the Vikings 35-0 after the first quarter and 45-0 at the end of the half. Despite their usual hard work ethic and preparation leading up to the game, the Vikes continued to fall apart in the second half.
Lawrence did score a touchdown and complete the extra point in the third quarter but the Green Knights were not finished. They held the Vikes to only 120 rushing yards and then went on to score even more touchdowns and end the game with a score of 79-7.
Even though it was an unfortunate game for the Vikes, senior Ben Hartman stated, “A team strength this week was picking each other up no matter how bad the game got.” He also added, “Our weakness was that we got accustomed to taking hits, and although we did a good job of getting up and continuing to play, we needed to establish a more actively physical mentality of attacking our opponent instead of waiting for the blow.” Junior Sam Wagner added, “We just didn’t match the other team’s intensity when we were out on the field.”
More problems occurred for the Vikings when injuries seemed ran rampant throughout the game. Wagner came out from a tackle with a broken hand and senior Nick Randall went down with a torn ACL, just to name a few. These injuries did take a toll on the Vikings’ game.
Hartman stated, “Injuries are never an easy thing to deal with, especially the magnitude of these specific injuries and who they happened to, but it’s just one of those things the team has to face together and overcome, both for the person who is hurt and for the good of the team in general.” Wagner then added, “It took a toll on our defense, definitely. It will be interesting to see what Coach Agnes has up his sleeve for our upcoming game with so many players out.”
Though it was a rough weekend, a few players definitely made stand-out plays for their team. Wagner thought that freshman Akeem Williams should be team MVP this weekend for his outstanding touchdown pass, which was his first collegiate touchdown pass. Hartman thought Wagner deserved the MVP title: “He played his heart out like he does every Saturday, and even after he got hurt he was still one of the more verbal guys on the sideline cheering the rest of the team on.”
The next game for the Vikings will be a home game this Saturday, Oct. 20 at 1 p.m.