By John RittenhouseThe Luverne Cardinals threw a wet blanket on Vermillion’s Homecoming festivities at the Dakota Dome Friday night.Playing in what was Luverne’s first game in a dome since qualifying for the state semifinals in 1993, the Cardinals seemed to adapt to the environment well by scoring 21 first-half points on the way to a 21-13 victory over the home-standing Tanagers.Vermillion did generate some excitement by pulling to within eight points of the Cardinals in the third quarter, but Luverne blanked the Tanagers the rest of the night to record its second straight win.The victory upped Luverne’s season record to 3-1, which is the team’s best start since winning the first three games of the 2001 season before falling to Worthington in the fourth game.Cardinal coach Todd Oye, who was an assistant coach for the 2001 team, is excited about Luverne’s 3-1 start in 2004. He was especially happy with the way his Cardinals adapted to the circumstances of playing in a dome against a fired-up team playing its homecoming game."We went to Vermillion early just so the kids got some extra time on the field before the game. It definitely was an adjustment for the kids, but I think they handled it," Oye said.The Cardinals proved they were ready for the challenge early.After the LHS team forced Vermillion to punt five plays into the game, the Cardinal offense took over on its own 20-yard line and put together its first of two 80-yard scoring drives.The march drew to a close with quarterback Nick Heronimus scoring on a five-yard run at the 6:38 mark of the first quarter and ended with a missed extra point.Heronimus played a big role in the opening march, completing a 25-yard pass to Jared Pick on the first play of the possession and running for 21- and 12-yard gains before scoring the touchdown.Luverne extended its lead to 14-0 with a drive that started late in the first quarter and ended early in the second stanza.Cardinal linebacker Mike Kunstle gave the offense the ball when he recovered a fumble on the Vermillion 44-yard line with 3:51 remaining in the first quarter.The LHS offense took over and moved the ball 44 yards in 12 plays before running back Derek Elbers scored on a one-yard run at the 10:38 mark of the second quarter.Heronimus threw a successful conversion pass to Pick after the touchdown, but it was a pass he completed during the drive that proved to be a key play in the possession.Facing a fourth-and-eight situation on the Vermillion 18, Heronimus flipped a screen pass to halfback Jake Hendricks. Hendricks ran his way to a nine-yard gain after making the reception, giving the Cardinals a new set of downs on the nine-yard line.What nearly was a flawless first half for the Luverne offense became tainted as the second quarter progressed.After taking over on the LHS 24 with 7:35 remaining in the first half, the Cardinal offense lost 14 yards in three plays. The situation took a turn for the worse when the snap from center during a punting situation skipped to the punter, who was tackled by the Tanagers on the LHS one-yard line.One play later, Vermillion’s Jordan Anderson scored on a one-yard run and Sean Pederson added the extra-point to make it a 14-7 game with 4:23 remaining in the first half.The LHS offense regained its form that led to its best first half of the season during its next possession.Luverne moved the ball 80 yards in six plays with Heronimus throwing a 54-yard touchdown pass to Brad Herman. Chris Engesser booted the extra point, giving the Cards a 21-7 lead at the 1:40 mark of the second stanza.The Cardinals got the ball back and moved it to the Vermillion 10-yard line with less than 10 seconds remaining in the first half, but a pass in the end zone was intercepted by the Tanagers."We did have a good first half," Oye admitted. "I think our offensive line played its best game of the year. We executed our passing game well, which set up our running game."After moving the ball efficiently and picking up nine first downs in the first half, the LHS offense became stagnant in the second.The Cards did pick up one first down during the opening series of the third quarter, but they had to punt moments later. Luverne’s next three offensive possessions were of the three-and-out variety.After forcing the Cards to punt five plays into the second half, the Vermillion offense put together its most successful drive of the game.The Tanagers used 12 running plays to cover 74 yards with Cody Hays scoring a four-yard run with 3:26 left in the third quarter. Luverne lineman Jose Saravia blocked the extra-point attempt, keeping the score at 21-13.Vermillion moved the ball to the Luverne 38-yard line before punting early in the fourth quarter.The Tanagers had the ball on the Luverne 24 as the quarter progressed, but a fourth-and-two pass fell incomplete to end the threat with 5:43 left to play.Vermillion pushed the ball into Luverne territory one more time, but Saravia forced a fumble that was recovered by Luverne’s Ben Nath on the LHS 49-yard line with 2:41 left to play."Jose Saravia made some big defensive plays for us," Oye offered. "It was his play on defense that was one of the keys for us winning the game."The Luverne offense picked up two first downs during the ensuing series, enabling the Cardinals to run the remaining time off the clock."Our defense has been the key to our team all season, but we had a hard time keeping Vermillion’s offense off the field in the second half," Oye said. "They did a good job offensively after making some adjustments at halftime. They were playing on their home field, and it was their Homecoming game, and there was no way they were going to fold in the second half."The table will be turned on the Cardinals when they entertain Jackson County Central for their Homecoming game Friday.The 2-2 Huskies are coming off a 28-0 loss to Pipestone, but Oye expects JCC to offer the Cardinals one of their stiffest challenges of the season."They are very big on the line," he said. "They have the size of some college teams. They also have a good quarterback. The keys for us will be to execute our assignments and not give up big plays."Team statisticsLuverne: 186 rushing yards, 161 passing yards, 347 total yards, 12 first downs, four penalties for 35 yards, two turnovers.Vermillion: 166 rushing yards, zero passing yards, 166 total yards, nine first downs, zero penalties, three turnovers.Individual statisticsRushing: Heronimus13-60, Hendricks 9-54, Nate Siebenahler 3-16, Elbers 10-54, Nath 1-2.Passing: Heronimus 9-18 for 161 yards.Receiving: Pick 5-87, Herman 2-63, Hendricks 2-11.Defense: Saravia one blocked extra point, Brandon Deragisch one interception, Nath one fumble recovery, Kunstle one fumble recovery.