Justin St. Ours | Daily Press Bark River-Harris’ Zach Robinette (left) dodges around Manistique defenders on a return Friday in Harris.

HARRIS — After an explosive and muddy first half, a waterlogged defensive duel decided the game as Bark River-Harris held down the Manistique Emeralds to win 20-6 here Friday in a WestPAC Iron Division football contest.

After a slog back-and-forth — only broken up by an effusive homecoming crowd, the Broncos were first on the board with a breakout 60-yard rush from Clayton Eichhorn. With 6:00 left in the first quarter, BR-H (5-2) converted the two-point conversion to lead 8-0.

Four minutes later, Manstique (2-5) answered back with an evasive 40-yard run from Schyler Andersen. However, Joseph Stein broke up the Emeralds’ pass on the two-point conversion and Bark River retained an 8-6 lead.

The second quarter showcased both teams’ defenses as three-and-outs were frequent. In addition to trading the ball back-and-forth, the Emeralds recovered a fumble with 9:12 left in the half due to a miscue on a snap, but the Broncos’ defense stalled their momentum.

“(Bark River-Harris) capitalized on the turnovers they got, and we didn’t,” Emeralds’ coach Todd Kangas said. “Both teams played a clean game in the second half.”

Mirroring the Broncos, Manistique ended a Bark River drive after Tyler Racicot picked off Andersen with 6:50 left.

“(Weather) was a huge factor, and it played in our favor tonight,” Broncos’ coach Al Stenberg said. “These are two evenly matched football teams, and we got some breaks.”

It wasn’t until the final two minutes that either team made it into the end zone again. After the Broncos forced a three-and-out, Nick Javurek launched a 62-yard pass to Stein for a touchdown. A failed two-point conversion left BR-H ahead 14-6 with 1:30 left in the half.

“Nick Javurek’s pass to Joe Stein was right on the money, and we needed a lightning bolt at that point,” Stenberg said. “Because, obviously, 8-6 is not where you want to be with a team that can cover ground like them. To be able to get that second touchdown was a big thing for us.”

Just a minute later, the Broncos’ defense proved its worth again when Racicot recovered a fumble and crossed over 20 yards to score the final points of the game and increase BR-H’s lead to 20-6 at the half.

Defense was on display in the second half, with Bark River limiting the Emeralds to nine yards of offense in the third quarter, and Manistique keeping the Broncos out of the end zone.

“Our defense played really well all night,” Stenberg said. “Schyler Andersen is a heck of a football player, and we held him in check — at least without any huge plays — as good as any team I’ve seen on film this year. That was the difference in the game. He’s going to have 100 yards, but you just have to keep him from breaking them out.”

BR-H’s Hal Burton excelled in the half, coming up with two sacks that pushed the Emeralds 10 yards back and helping halt their drives.

“I think we got young guys, and they don’t realize the effort and the quality of effort that they have to give all the time to beat teams like this,” Kangas said. “(Bark River is) a good team. I don’t think the score was (indicative of our skill level).”

Stein led the offense with 62 yards on one reception with one TD, and Eichhorn collected 60 yards on one carry and one TD. Aidan Johnson finished with 42 yards on 10 carries, and Riley Bray notched 37 on one catch. Javurek went 4-for-10 for 124 yards and one TD. He also picked up 27 yards on the ground on four carries.

Andersen finished with 184 yards on 30 carries, no completions and one interception. Tony Williams also notched 25 yards on four carries.

Bark River-Harris hosts Lake Linden-Hubbell Oct. 19. Manistique hosts Norway Friday.