Five hours one way to play football may seem like a lot, but when the destination is Dayton-it’s worth every minute of picturesque beauty. Tongue River High School is north of Sheridan nestled in the Big Horn Mountains and one of the best places to watch a game. Despite some bus troubles, the ride home was much easier after NCHS picked up their first win of the season.

Without soph tailback Drake Lamp in the lineup it was to be expected that the defense would have to play a bigger role-and improved from last week. Things didn’t begin so well on this evening where kickoff temps hovered around 80, as the home team struck paydirt first. Zach Schankey was the Eagles workhorse and midway through the first period scored on a nine yard run. The PAT was wide left but TR led 6-0. Moments later Damien Molzahn covered up a loose ball near midfield and the Tigers began a 12 play drive that carried into the second quarter. Wyatt Stauffer connected with Dylan Molzahn on a screen pass that the younger Molzahn carried in nine yards to tie the game. He got stuffed on the conversion but the game was deadlocked.

As halftime approached and the Eagles were driving downfield, senior Teagan Tschacher stepped in front of a pass and raced down the sideline for an 80 yard interception return. On the conversion Dylan Molzahn was held out of the endzone but NCHS took a 12-6 lead into the break.

James Stone broke a few tackles and gave the Tigers an 18-6 lead with his 50 yard run three minutes into the third quarter. Dylan Molzahn was denied again on the two point attempt but Lusk had some breathing room. As the two similar teams battled, the Tigers were able to strike again near the end of the period. Stauffer dropped back and found Tschacher on an inside route. Tschacher went up for the catch, broke a tackle, and 78 yards later was in the endzone for an NCHS touchdown. Damien Molzahn got the call and converted the run for a 26-6 lead.

Caught napping, the Tigers gave up an early fourth period touchdown as Luke Stutzman got together with Kyle Breen for a 35 yard touchdown. The PAT was blocked by the Tigers but 26-12 was suddenly not a safe lead with 11:49 still on the clock. Aric Eaton helped ice the game with a 37 yard interception return deep into Eagle territory. NCHS salted away the final six minutes for the first win (and conference win) of the season.

“It was a physical game and we knew it would be,” said Head Coach Ryan Nelson. “They had two big plays and we had four big plays. And, our defense stepped up when they needed to, we had two huge interceptions.”

SCORE BY QUARTERS

NCHS 0-12-14-0--26

TRHS 6-0-0-6--12

TEAM STATS NCHS: Passing- 3 comp/7 atts, 95 yds; Rushing- 40 atts/166 yds; Receiving- 3 catch/95 yds; 7 first downs; 3 fumbles/1 lost; 8 penalties/50 yds.

TRHS: Passing- 2/9, 70; Rushing- 43/149; Receiving- 2/70; 13 first downs; 1 fumble/1 lost; 3 penalties/15 yds.

NCHS PLAYER STATS: Passing- Stauffer 3/7, 95 yds, 2TD; Rushing- Dy Molzahn 13/58, Stone 4/55, TD, Da Molzahn 16/43, Tschacher 1/15. Receiving- Tschacher 1/78, TD, Dy Molzahn 1/9, TD, Ryan Bruegger 1/8. Defensive points: Stone 17, Da Molzahn 16, Bruegger 15, Dy Molzahn 12, Jacob Miller 11, Jasper Caldera 10, Tschacher 8, Dmitri Richards 6, Eaton 5, Mason Wells 4, Stauffer 2, Tanner Carpenter 1, Riley Blackburn 1.

The Tigers welcome Wind River to Gibson Field at Fullmer Stadium this Friday evening, and early results show the Cougars might be the best team in the West Conference. “I’ve seen their roster, they’re big. We are just going to get ready and it will be a good challenge for us, Nelson added.” Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.