The Bellefontaine Chieftains continued their recent surge Saturday, overcoming an early deficit and a wild second half to defeat River Valley 6-3 on the road.

The victory marked Bellefontaine's third straight win and pushed the Chieftains to 4-3-2 overall and 3-2 in Central Buckeye Conference play. It was also the team's highest-scoring performance of the season.

The match was anything but ordinary.

River Valley struck first, putting the Chieftains behind early. Bellefontaine, however, responded with three goals during the final six minutes of the opening half to take control heading into the break.

Anderson Konz provided two of those goals, finding the back of the net in the 6th and 2nd minutes remaining in the half. Grady Graham assisted on Konz's first goal, while Ethan Turner set up the second.

Graham then converted a penalty kick with just one minute remaining in the half, sending Bellefontaine into halftime with a 3-1 advantage.

The Chieftains weren't finished.

Turner added another goal 35 minutes into the match, extending Bellefontaine's lead to 4-1. River Valley responded with two goals of its own, cutting the deficit to 4-3 and putting the Chieftains' comeback victory in jeopardy.

Bellefontaine answered once again.

Graham converted another penalty kick to give the Chieftains some breathing room before Konz completed his hat trick with four minutes remaining, putting the finishing touches on the 6-3 victory

The match featured plenty of drama along the way. Bellefontaine was awarded three penalty kicks, a straight red card was issued during the contest and the two teams combined for nine goals.

For head coach Steve Henry, the chaotic nature of the match made the victory even more meaningful.

“What a crazy game! We took 3 PKs, there was a straight red card, and 9 goals were scored,” Henry said. “And we came from behind again to win the game. This caps off this 3 game seriesthat we needed to win and we did. I’m very proud of them and the way that they have competed.”

Henry also pointed to the work of Turner and Konz as a major factor in the victory.

“This game was all about Ethan Turner and Anderson Konz creating chances in the box,” Henry said. “Whether they were hitting shots or getting fouled, they had a hand in about everyone of our goals.”

The victory capped a strong stretch for the Chieftains. Bellefontaine has now won four of its last five road matches, with Saturday's six-goal performance giving the team 13 goals during that five-game road stretch.

The Chieftains will have little time to celebrate.

Bellefontaine returns home Monday, Sept. 28, for another CBC matchup against Kenton Ridge, with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Kenton Ridge enters the contest at 7-2-1 overall and 4-2-1 in conference play.

After surviving another comeback effort on the road, the Chieftains will look to carry that momentum into what Henry described as a major test.

“Now we get to really test ourselves with a very good KR team coming to the Cue on Monday,” Henry said. “We have some momentum, now we need to see if we have the grit and focus to win again!”