NORTH MUSKEGON- When the West Michigan Conference divides into two divisions next season, teams like Ravenna and North Muskegon will benefit.

They will play in a division with the smaller schools, and if recent history is any indication, they will be the two best teams, and could be playing for championships on a regular basis.

This year, however, they were playing to keep their playoff hopes alive, and Ravenna came out on top 17-6 at North Muskegon’s Fred Jacks Stadium to improve to 5-2 on the season and 3-4 in conference play.

The Bulldogs had to rally from an early deficit, after allowing North Muskegon to march down the field and score in its first drive.

“Our first drive defensively was really frustrating,” said Ravenna coach Justin Ego. “We had them punting and we had a penalty that gave them the ball back. We missed a lot of tackles, but after that we settled in and we were fine.

Ravenna quarterback Kyle Beebe gets ready to throw while Clay Schullo (6) blocks and North Muskegon’s Denny Belmonte (2) tries to read the play.

“This was a huge win because their record is deceiving. They are a much better team than the 2-5 squad they are.”

North Muskegon was hampered by the loss of freshman quarterback James Young, who was nearing the 1,000-yard mark in passing. He was tackled hard in the second quarter and suffered a shoulder injury that ended his game.

North Muskegon’s offense wasn’t the same after the injury, when junior running back Denny Belmonte took over at QB.

“We have been trying to develop a freshman quarterback, so other players haven’t been getting a lot of reps (at the quarterback position) in practice,” said North Muskegon coach Larry Witham. “We threw Belmonte to the wolves and our play designs aren’t really triggered around his skill set.”

The Norse opened the scoring with a 76-yard drive that melted over eight minutes off the clock on 14 plays.

Belmonte capped the drive by punching the ball into the end zone from one yard out with 3:56 left in the first quarter. The PAT kick failed, leaving the Norse with a 6-0 advantage.

Ravenna’s Brenden Forsythe (66) and Brandon McFarren (62) team up for a tackle.

The Norse only had four plays on defense during the opening quarter because they forced Ravenna to punt on its first possession.

But North Muskegon failed to take advantage of the three-and-out, punting on its next offensive possession.

Ravenna missed a 29-yard field goal attempt with just under nine minutes left in the second quarter, leaving North Muskegon clinging to its lead.

Young ran for 15 yards on the first play of North Muskegon’s next possession, then was tackled hard out of bounds, which caused the injury and forced him out of the game.

Ravenna finally got on the scoreboard when Hunter Hogan caught a 35-yard pass on fourth down from quarterback Kyle Beebe with 39 seconds left in the first half.

Hogan nailed the extra point, giving the Bulldogs a slim 7-6 lead at halftime.

Ravenna opened the second half with the ball and drove it 73 yards on 12 plays that took nearly six minutes off the clock.

The long drive was capped by a four-yard touchdown run by Hogan, and the Bulldogs led 14-6 with 6:24 remaining in the third quarter.

North Muskegon’s Denny Belmonte (2) tries to work around Ravenna’s Hunter Hogan (7).

North Muskegon tried to cut into its deficit, but only managed to get one first down during its last two possessions in the third quarter.

The Bulldogs closed out the scoring on their first possession of the fourth on a 37 yard field goal by Hogan with 9:48 left.

The Norse got the ball back and drove to the Ravenna 35-yard line, but then had 20 yards worth of penalties, which resulted in a turnover on downs at the 47-yard line.

North Muskegon drove to the Ravenna 16  on its last possession, but then had a five-yard penalty and allowed three consecutive sacks to close out the game.

Clay Schullo paced the Bulldog offense with 82 yards on 12 carries while Hogan had 63 yards on 11 attempts and one touchdown.

Beebe threw for 60 yards on 5-for-8 passing with a touchdown and an interception. Hogan caught two passes for 40 yards and one score.

Ravenna’s defense was led by Dayton Thomas with nine tackles and two sacks, while Brandon McFarren had eight tackles.

North Muskegon QB James Young gets ready to take a snap.

The Bulldogs will face Oakridge next Friday.

North Muskegon was paced by Belmonte, who threw for 90 yards on 12-for-21 passing, while rushing for 27 yards, including a touchdown. Matt Colbert caught seven passes for 58 yards.

Bo Nedeau led the Norse defensively with 6.5 tackles, while Belmonte had 5.5 and Kyle Huff had five.

The Norse, now 2-5, will play Mason County Central next Friday.