Jimmy Lafakis/MDN
Surrey junior linebacker Jaeger Hoiland (white) tackles Lewis & Clark/Berthold junior quarterback Patrick Simons (yellow) during Friday evening’s game in Berthold.

BERTHOLD — As the evening sun set on a physical night of 9-man football, Surrey’s Randy Polum invited all spectators to his coming-out party.

Polum, a junior wide receiver and defensive back, did his damage on both sides of the field in Surrey’s 40-18 victory over Lewis & Clark/Berthold on Friday evening. He kicked off the festivities with an artful touchdown reception on the Mustangs’ first drive of the game.

“I knew I could get wide open,” Polum said. “I saw that ball coming and watched into my hands. It was exciting, man. We get out here with our boys — with our brothers — and we get to play. Not a lot of teams get to do this at this time of year because of the (coronavirus). We’re all blessed.”

After Surrey sophomore quarterback Rylan Scheig punched in a six-yard touchdown reception, Polum stunned the Bombers on their senior night with an electrifying pick-six as time expired in the first quarter.

“Honestly, I didn’t think I was going to get it,” he said. “I knew I was going to break it up. Then, it just fell right into my hands. I thought I was going to slip. I picked myself up, and I was gone. I just saw green. I was really tired, but I had to scream.”

The Mustangs held a convincing 20-0 advantage at the end of the period. Far from finished, Polum snagged another interception deep in Bombers territory.

Surrey junior running back Chris Jenner ripped off a touchdown run Although the Mustangs’ two-point conversion attempts led to mixed results, Surrey never trailed.

The stout Surrey defense made a goal-line stand as the contest reached the intermission. That defensive effort exemplified the evening — whenever the Bombers started to click, the Mustangs held their ground.

“We got stuck in that stance and it was, ‘Oh, we’ve really got to make a stance now,” Surrey head coach Mark Kennedy said. “This is going to set the tone. We don’t want to give them any momentum going into the second half. Our kids were able to play well in that situation. We worked on it a little bit in practice. We probably should have worked it more. Their eyes were really big before it happened.”

Surrey’s 26-0 lead ballooned in the second half. The Mustangs marched down the field and ate up a significant chunk of time in the third quarter. Sophomore fullback Will Webb found paydirt with a strong touchdown run near the goal line.

The Bombers put up their first six points late in the third quarter, but the Mustangs had no intentions of stopping. In the early stages of the fourth frame, Jenner responded in kind with his second touchdown of the contest.

At that point, Surrey nursed an overwhelming 40-6 advantage. On the sidelines, Kennedy yelled instructions and uplifted his players.

During Surrey’s practices, Kennedy underscores the importance of the defense getting to the ball after the play concludes. The Mustangs rewarded their head coach with a heightened sense of urgency.

“This humidity out here got to us a little bit,” Kennedy said. “We tried to tell the kids, ‘You’ve got to hydrate. You’ve got to take care of your bodies.’ That’s a part of being on a successful team and giving yourself a chance. You’ve got to take care of your body. For the most part, the kids did good. The humidity still got to us. We flew around a bit. Maybe not as much as we would have liked to. But, considering the circumstances, I think our kids did a really good job of moving around.”

Late in the fourth quarter, Berthold junior quarterback Patrick Simons linked up with senior wide receiver Matt Schauer for a 15-yard touchdown pass on fourth down. As the clock ticked down, the Mustangs’ lead proved to be insurmountable.

Simons scored a rushing touchdown as the final buzzer sounded. Moments later, Surrey sealed the 40-18 win.

“This is Mustang football,” Polum said. “At the end of the day, we respect our opponent. But, we’re going to come in here. We’re going to come and beat you. We’re going to come and beat you every play. Not just one or two plays. Every single play. Every single snap.”

Both teams will play at 7 p.m. next Friday. The Mustangs will travel to Benson County, while the Bombers will head west to Trenton.

Jimmy Lafakis covers Minot High School sports and Class B high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @JJLII30.