Vale football coach Jeff Aldred talks to his team at practice recently. The Vikings suffered too many turnovers against La Grande last Friday night. (The Enterpriser/PAT CALDWELL).
LA GRANDE – The Tigers pounced on Vale turnovers to post a 37-12 prep football victory Friday night.
The Vikings turned the ball over five times – including three interceptions – during crucial situations and La Grande took advantage.
“That pretty much speaks to the story,” said Vale coach Jeff Aldred.
La Grande (2-0) opened the game with a long scoring drive and built a 17-0 advantage after the first quarter and was ahead 24-0 at halftime.
The Tigers “created their own opportunities but we didn’t do ourselves any favors,” Aldred said.
“Against good teams you can’t make those kinds of mistakes,” he said.
Vale (2-1) did get a big game from senior John Wolfe, who finished the night with five catches for 121 yards and two touchdowns, both in the second half.
“Good teams take advantage of mistakes and that was exactly what happened,” said Aldred.
Vale mustered just 51 yards of offense in the first half while La Grande racked up 158 yards.
“When you get behind against good teams it is a tough situation getting back into it. We missed some opportunities,” said Aldred.
Logan Williams paced the Tiger ground attack with 51 yards on 13 carriers.
Aldred said while the defeat stings, it is just one game.
“We played well in the second half. This isn’t a devastating loss. We just know it should have been a one- or two-score game and it wasn’t. We have a lot of good things moving forward,” said Aldred.
Meanwhile, Adrian improved to 3-0 with a commanding 58-0 win over Wallowa Friday.
Adrian plays Imbler at home this Friday while Vale hosts New Plymouth. Both games start at 7 p.m.
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