ALEXANDRIA — If the Bemidji High School football team was going to upset the No. 1 Alexandria Cardinals in the Section 8-5A final Friday night, it needed to make a statement early.

Its first three drives: Fumble, interception, fumble.

By the time the Lumberjacks could find their bearings, it was already too late, as the Cardinals rolled to a 49-21 victory to become the Section 8-5A champions at Viking Bank Field in Alexandria. It's the third consecutive section title for Alexandria.

“Honestly, we made too many mistakes against a quality opponent,” BHS head coach Bryan Stoffel said. “We can't do that. When you look back on how the game played out, it was probably one of the worst starts you could possibly imagine. Three turnovers; that’s not going to ever be good.

“That was the ballgame

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