The Aggies were at home for their first game of the season on the night of Friday, Aug. 22. The Aggies were first to receive the ball but were not able to make a whole lot of it. They got as far as their own 40 years line before being brought down on the fourth for a turnover. The Hi-Liners were equally unable to capitalize, not gaining a single yard on their first possession of the game.

The rest of the first half was not much different. Of the Hi-Liners four possessions of the half, they only gained a total of 15 yards. They earned just five yards rushing the ball over eight carries and 10 in the air. The Hi-Liners ended the first half with four possessions, all ending in punts.

The Aggies on the other hand earned a total of 139 yards in the first 24 minutes of the game. They earned 100 yards on the ground in a total of 25 carries and Aggies quarterback, senior Cooper Kittleson completed four out of twelve passes in the first half for 39 yards in the air. The Aggies had five possessions in the first half. Only the second possession ended in a punt, the first, third and fourth all ended in turnovers while the fifth was cut off at half time.

The first points on the board didn’t come until just over halfway through the third quarter when a throw from Kittleson to senior tight end Mason Kraft landed the Aggies their first touchdown. The Aggies were then able to secure the two-point conversion and give themselves an 8-0 lead over the Hi-Liners.

Nathan Beitler/MDN Velva quarterback Cooper Kittleson scans the field for an open receiver in the Aggies’ game versus the Valley City Hi-Liners on Friday, Aug. 22. The Aggies would earn a total of 88 yards and a score with eight out of 18 complete passes.

The Aggies were able to keep the Hi-Liners at bay though the rest of the quarter when in the fourth, Kittleson was able to run the ball six yards into the end zone for the Aggies’ second touchdown of the game. They were once again able to confirm the extra two points which gave the Aggies a near insurmountable 16-0 lead over the Hi-Liners. The Aggies would keep the lead through the end of the fourth quarter, not allowing the Hi-Liners to score a single touchdown.

“[Our] defense played fantastic,” said Aggies head coach Matt Weidler. “We played really hard and I thought we matched [Valley City’s] effort. Our guys on the defensive line were very disruptive … and our guys rallied the ball, so it was a pretty good defensive win.”

Coach Weidler says that he plans to work on the offensive side of the ball leading up to their next game. He says that they had missed some things on the field that he is looking to correct.

“We’re close,” Coach Weidler said. “But it’s week one, so we’ll go to the film, learn and just have another good week of practice.”

The Aggies ended with 251 yards of offense in their game against the Hi-Liners Friday, Aug. 22. The Hi-Liners earned just 51 yards. The Aggies had 45 carries over the course of the game for 163 yards and eight out of 18 completed passes for 88 yards and a score.

The Velva-Drake/Anamoose-Garrison Aggies will play their next game away against Harvey/Wells County Friday, Aug. 29.