Just in case you missed it, the Estherville Lincoln Central crowd indicates that the Midgets have another first down. The fans were kept hopping as ELC had two long scoring drives—one in the first half and one in the second—in a 20-3 win over Denison-Schleswig on Friday. EDN photo by David Swartz

A defense that bent, but didn’t break and a solid running game gave Estherville Lincoln Central a decisive 20-3 win over Denison-Schleswig on Friday. The Midgets running game worked to perfection in the first half as ELC built a 14-3 lead. However, an interception by Jordan Eggers followed by a 99-yard, 8 minute-14 second drive in the fourth quarter put the game out of reach. The Midgets set the tone early in the ball game. Although both teams went three plays and out on their first possessions, ELC got the first break. On ELC’s punt, Keith Fandel kicked a line-drive that took a Midget bounce past the Monarch return man. He picked the ball up, but a hard hit jarred the ball loose and Nathan Hecht recovered for ELC at the Denison-Schleswig 25. A couple runs by Eggers and the Midgets were knocking on the door at the 5-yard line. Alex Arends kept the ball on an option play and broke a pair of tackles to reach the endzone with 6:03 remaining in the first quarter.