Sports : Down 10-0, Vikes rally for 41-17 Homecoming win

Gunner Tranel bangs past a Raider defender for one of his 4 TDs; he ran for 226 yards.

Students congratulate the Vikings for their Homecoming win over Anamosa.

Chris Merchant (11) takes his turn ringing the victory bell.

Gunner Tranel carries the banner as the Viking sprint to ring the victory bell.

Matt DeVries (20) fights for yardage against two Raider tacklers.

While Kelly Wagner made five of six PAT kick attempts, this one was blocked.

Viking linemen make room for the running game.

The Anamosa passing game presented some challenges to the VS defense.

VS cross country team members ran the ball from Anamosa to Vinton.

Homecoming Queen Kelly Wagner and King John Levis were introduced before the game.

Chase Overton tries to defend against Anamosa's passing offense.

Kelyn Rickels hauls down the first of his three interceptions.

Gunner Tranel ran for 226 yards and four touchdowns to lead VS to a Homecoming win.

It took several Raiders to stop Tranel runs.

Matt DeVries blocks for QB Lincoln Rifey, who threw this pass...

...to Darren Charlier for a 43-yard touchdown.

Tranel breaks through the Raider defensive line.

Matt DeVries looks for running room vs. the Raiders.

Down 10-0 halfway through the second quarter, the Vinton-Shellsburg Vikings used several big offensive plays, a bruising running game by Gunner Tranel and three interceptions by Kelyn Rickels to rally to a 41-17 Homecoming win over Anamosa Friday night.

The game began with miscues by both teams. Holding penalties on scoring plays kept both the Vikings and the Raiders off the scoreboard early.

Anamosa scored first, on a field goal that was partially blocked but still made it through the uprights.

The Raiders scored again on a 30-yard run, giving the visitors a 10-0 lead with 7:54 left in the second quarter.

Rickels' first interception later in the second quarter gave the Vikings the ball with just under four minutes left. Rickels later scored on a 44-yard run, and the Vikings cut the lead to 3, 10-7.

A Raider fumble gave the Vikes the ball on the Anamosa 30, and set up the first TD run for Gunner Tranel. The Vikings took a 14-10 lead into the half.

The rest of the game – with the exception of 1 long TD pass play for the Raiders – belonged to the Vikings.

Tranel carried the ball for a touchdown, and a 21-10 lead. After Anamosa quickly scored on long pass to cut the lead to 4, the Vikings quickly pulled away. First, a 43-yard touchdown pass from Lincoln Riffey to Darren Charlie made the score 27-17; but the PAT kick was blocked.

Tranel scored from 41 yards out on the first play of the fourth quarter to boost the score to 34-17; his 30-yard run made it 41-17. Senior Kelly Wagner, who wore the tiara of the Homecoming Queen on her head while practicing before the game, connected on five of six PAT kick tries. One attempt was blocked.

“This was a very good team we beat,” said Viking Head Coach Pat Farley. “They are a lot better than the last time we played them.”

The difference between the first 20 minutes and the last 28 was a big improvement in play the offensive line, the big plays on defense, and the fact that Tranel played “out of his mind,” said the coach.

Tranel rushed for 226 yards on 26 carries, and scored four of the Vikings six touchdowns. He also led the defense with 13 total tackles.

See complete Viking stats for the game HERE.

After the team gathered to ring the victory bell, Tranel led the seniors in a brief celebration of their Homecoming win.

The game included the introduction of the newest members of the Viking/Vikette Hall of Fame.

Injury Report

Coach Pat Farley sat at his desk Friday morning before the Homecoming game, listing the players who would not be available against Anamosa.

He needed the fingers of both hands to tally the total. The most recent player to go down, Taylor Dinderman, suffered serious knee injuries against Marion. He had broken up Western Dubuque passes on consecutive plays during the last home game, tackling a receiver to break up a pass, then putting pressure on the quarterback to break up another play.

"I saw the film of his injury twice," said Farley, who explained that there was no real explanation, other than that Dinderman simply landed in a strange way. The same thing happened to Grant Sagan, who injured a knee, and Nolan Edwards, who is out for the season with a broken collarbone.

"It's depressing," said Farley. "It's just part of the game that we all love."

Still, said the coach, the injuries are no excuse. "People still expect us to perform well."

On Friday night, they did.

Two players, Sagan and Kyle McAbee, are expected to return from injuries this week when the Vikings host Center Point-Urbana. CPU defeated Marion, which had earlier shut out the Vikings, 28-0.

Other 3A District 5 Week 6 scores

Epworth, Western Dubuque 31, Central Clinton, DeWitt 14
Maquoketa 35, Union, La Porte City 15

Next week's schedule:

Central Clinton, DeWitt at Marion
Maquoketa at Anamosa
Union, La Porte City at Epworth, Western Dubuque

See Class 3A standings for this week HERE.

Thanks to Ryan Clemens of Clemens Photography for providing the eight last photos that accompany this story. See more photos of VS activities on Clemens' web site, www.clemensphotography.us