Winning hasn’t come easily to the Albert Lea High School football team. In fact, they hadn’t won a game since the 1998 season &045; until Friday.

The Tigers took down the Winona Winhawks Friday night, 13-6. The game was tense, with many strong drives by Winona that resulted in interceptions and fumbles.

But the win was more than a win.

&uot;I’m so excited,&uot; said Mike Moore, parent of senior Ryan Moore and one of the many ALHS fans who charged the field after the game.

The 40-game drought wasn’t an easy one

to endure.

&uot;They finally got the monkey off their back,&uot; Moore said.

Moore was one of 49 parents who came on a chartered bus.

&uot;We knew we had a good chance,&uot; he said about ALHS beating Winona.

Moore said the long wait for a win was overcome by the team, not the fans.

&uot;The kids deserve all the credit,&uot; Moore said. &uot;They played their hearts out.&uot;

For senior quarterback Steve Thorn, it was everything he’d hoped for.

&uot;It is amazing,&uot; Thorn said, as friends, fans and teammates walked, by slapping him on the back and shaking his hand. &uot;This is the first time in my life I’ve ever cried for joy.&uot;

The win has been a long time coming. Thorn said it was the team’s first varsity win since he was in eighth grade.

The game was back and forth: many defensive stands, many turnovers, and some big offensive drives for the Tigers.

Whenever the Tigers started building confidence, Winona would make a big play. Though it became clearer and clearer Albert Lea was set to win, there was a detectable mood among the players that the 40-game trail would not be over until the final whistle blew.

On the final four plays for Winona, with just under two minutes left, the ALHS defense made a stand. The crowd of more than 100 cheered loudly, likely more loudly than they’ve had reason to do in five years.

When the final 19 seconds ticked off of the clock, the players jumped and hugged each other in joy. They’d been released from under a burden.

Forty-year old women with purses flailing wildly, students who’d driven the 106 miles to see their classmates play, and proud fathers dashed onto the field.

The players and fans gathered in the middle of the field, holding helmets high and cheering hoarsely.

ALHS juniors Andrew Irvine, Preston Dahl and Brock Sorenson drove to Winona on the chance of victory.

&uot;We knew this was the one,&uot; Irvine said.

Albert Lea’s head coach, Jeff Marty, said the win was more than a football victory.

&uot;This was a big win, not only for us, but also for our community,&uot; Marty said.

He admits that it was difficult to build fan support with a struggling program.

&uot;It’s hard for a community to get behind something that isn’t a winning cause,&uot; he said.

Marty said it was a 42-man victory, and gave his players full credit for the win.

&uot;They persevered and it finally paid off,&uot; Marty said, minutes after he was doused with the team’s Gatorade jug. &uot;It’s a great hurdle cleared.&uot;

(Contact Peter Cox at peter.cox@albertleatribune.com or 379-3433)