Another homecoming game ended in disappointment for the Albert Lea football team.

The Tigers (0-4, 0-3 Big Nine) weren’t sharp Friday in a 27-7 loss to Faribault (2-2, 2-1 Big Nine) at Hammer Field and weren’t able to find big plays quite like the Falcons did.

The Falcons’ running game was too powerful at times for the Tigers, especially in the second half as the power of Cole Casteel and quickness of Jake Bass created a potent combination.

Casteel rushed for two touchdowns and 76 yards on 18 attempts and Bass rushed for 102 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, including a 51-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter that iced the game for Faribault.

“It was disappointing because I think we were stopping them right away,” said Albert Lea head coach Clay Anderson. “The second half I’m not sure what happened.”

The Falcons broke a few big plays against the Tigers as they delivered a back-breaking loss to Albert Lea.

“I’m just hoping we continue to come to work, bring our lunch pail and just have a great work ethic,” Anderson said. “We’ve improved as the four weeks have gone on. I’d really hate to see us take a step back. It will be interesting to see where we go from here.”

The Tigers get Rochester Century next, the 10th ranked team in Class 5A and a squad that just knocked off Owatonna 28-21 Friday night. Last season’s homecoming loss to Mankato East haunted the team the rest of the season and it never overcame it. Now the test is for this year’s squad to overcome another disappointment.

“We know we’re a good football team,” said Albert Lea senior running back Luke Grossman, who finished with 66 yards rushing. “We just have to come out with a little more fire and a little more confidence.”

It was a sloppy game from the start. Faribault and the Tigers combined for three turnovers in the first six series. Albert Lea committed two of the turnovers, an interception and a fumble while Aaron Klatt intercepted a pass from Falcons’ quarterback Joe Grote near the goal line to stop Faribault on its first possession.

The Falcons completed an 80-yard drive in the second quarter when Casteel scored from six yards out to take a 7-0 lead. The big play of the drive came when Faribault’s Dan Fredenburg caught a 36-yard pass down the far sideline on third-and-11. Three plays later the Falcons had a 7-0 lead going into halftime.

To start the second half Albert Lea went three-and-out, but a blocked punt gave Faribault the ball at the Albert Lea 30 yard line. Seven plays later Bass punched it in from a yard out to make the game 14-0.

The Tigers came back to make it a 14-6 game when quarterback Kyle Kriewall found an open Casey Marka for a 20-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter.

Casteel scored his second touchdown of the game on a 6-yard run in the third quarter to make the game 21-6 after an eight-play, 63-yard drive.

Grossman’s lengthy kick return gave Albert Lea the ball at the Faribault 37 yard line. Six plays later Dillon Stolt drew the game to 21-12 and the Tigers had a chance to make it a one-score game, but a two-point conversion pass play fell incomplete.

The Falcons salted it away in the fourth quarter when Bass broke free for a 51-yard touchdown run with 3 minutes, 9 seconds left in the game.

Albert Lea completed just five passes for 53 yards and dealt with dropped passes, overthrown balls and a lack of coordination.

“There was a lot of missed opportunities, which is too bad,” Anderson said.

Faribault 27, Albert Lea 12

Faribault 0 7 14 6 — 27

Albert Lea 0 0 6 6 —  12

Second Quarter

F—Casteel 6 run (Morris kick), 3:02.

Third Quarter

F—Bass 1 run (Morris kick), 8:26.

AL—Marka 20 pass from Kriewall (pass field), 5:17.

F— Casteel 6 run (Morris kick), 1:30

Fourth Quarter

AL— Stolt 4 run (pass failed), 11:47.

F—Bass 51 run (kick failed), 3:09.

F AL

First Downs 15 11

Total Net Yards 343 248

Rushes-yards 50-232 32-185

Passing 111 53

Punt Returns 4-0 4-0

Kickoff Returns 3-28 3-75

Interception Ret. 2-62 1-26

Comp-Att-Int 8-13-1 4-16-2

Sacked-Yards Lost 1-(minus 2) 1-(minus 7)

Punts 4-33 4-31.25

Fumbles-Lost 0-0 1-1

Penalties-Yards 3-15 4-31

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Faribault, Casteel 18-76, Bass 16-102, Putrah 7-31. Albert Lea, Stolt 13-81, Grossman 14-66, Kriewall 3-31, Hansen 1-7.

PASSING—Faribault, Grote 8-13-1-111. Albert Lea, Kriewall 4-15-0-53.

RECEIVING—Faribault, Fredenburg 6-84, Putrah 1-20, Gustafson 1-6. Albert Lea, Grossman 2-26, Marka 1-20, Rasmussen 1-7.

MISSED FIELD GOALS—None.