Football (11/17)

Football: Cougar Dream Season Ends In No-Second Agony

Dreams sometimes end agonizingly. After a fairytale season and the school’s first state berth in football since 1981, #3 in 9-Man Mabel-Canton (South 3-seed, 11-0) bowed out in the state quarterfinals at Buffalo High School. Versus #5 Hillcrest Lutheran Academy (South 2-seed, 10-0), it did not just come down to the last play. It came down a conversion with zeroes on the clock. Paul Tollefsrud’s Cougars pulled off a near amazing fourth quarter comeback. They almost forced overtime. In the third quarter, the Comets broke a 16-16 halftime tie with an Ethan Swedberg 17-yard touchdown run, and a 58-yard Swedberg TD pass to Sean Berge. Hillcrest converted both, putting the Cougars up against it down 16 at 32-16. The teams then exchanged scores, with Swedberg scoring on 10-yard run (plus the conversion) to again make it a 16-point lead at 40-24 with 7:49 left in the game. But the Cougars showed heart to the end. They first marched 77 yards in nine plays, including overcoming a 4th and 12 via Isaac Underbakke 15-yard scramble. Two plays later, Kale Tollefsrud scored via a 5-yard TD run. Underbakke ran in the all-important conversion keeping M-C alive, down 40-32 with 3:33 left. They needed a stop, something that each team’s defense struggled to do. The Cougars two defensive stands up until that point were forcing a fumble in the second quarter at the M-C 25, and stopping the Comets in the red zone to end the first half. Hillcrest’s other five possessions all ended in touchdowns and conversions. But M-C got its stop. The Comets punted to the Cougar 28. With 1:44 left, M-C had their chance. Underbakke had three runs of 10 yards or more as the Cougars matriculated the ball downfield quickly. In seven plays, the Cougars were at the Hillcrest 10-yard line as time ticked away. In the end, it all came down to one play, fourth and goal at the five with 0:04 left. Underbakke was pressured majorly, yet in a mass of humanity threw an off-balanced pass to a wide-open Darian Hershberger in the end zone for the improbable score with nothing on the clock! The dramatic touchdown made it 40-38! Cougar fans were in euphoria, but M-C still needed the conversion to force overtime. At that point, the teams were 9-for-9 on two-point tries. But the game’s tenth conversion came up no dice for M-C. A run left did not really have much chance; too many bodies. Underbakke was spun around by a jersey tackle of Hillcrest’s Luke McGuire, brought down at around the line of scrimmage. And that was that. A memorable season ended memorably, but the Cougars were on the wrong end of it. They fell 40-38. The combination of Swedberg (14 of 22, 249 yards, 3 TDs passing; 21-124, 2 TDs rushing) and Berge (8-183, 2 TDs receiving) was slightly too much. Swedberg ran in all five Hillcrest conversions as well. The duo helped the Comets total 426 yards of offense. Underbakke (6 of 11, 92 yards, TD, conversion passing; 20-144, 2 TDs, conversion rushing) valiantly led the Cougar attack, helped by K-Tollefsrud (16-88, 2 TDs) and Kale Eiken (15-69, two conversions rushing). The Cougars totaled 406 yards of offense. Each team racked up 20-plus first downs. Said game was the only competitive 9-Man quarterfinal. Hills-Beaver Creek beat Red Rock Central 44-14, Kittson County Central whacked Cook County 49-0, and Fertile-Beltrami topped Cromwell-Wright Area 40-14. The Cougars’ fantastic season ends at 11-1. Underbakke, K-Tollefsrud, Hershberger, Milton Hutchinson, Kenny Hutchinson, Nate Nordsving, Michael Kime, and Mason Yoder are the team’s eight seniors. They can boast what few from M-C can in football: “I made state!”

Football: Falcons Cannot Dig Out Big Early Hole, Fall in State Quarterfinals

Quarterback Teague Meyer ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns in the first half as Murray County Central totaled 244 yards rushing in the stanza. The unranked Rebels (Section 3A Champ, 8-2) built a big early lead, digging #3 in Class Fillmore Central (Section 1A Champ, 10-0) a big hole in a state quarterfinal game. Using an option attack, MCC runners burst around end multiple-times. The Rebels had five runs of 20-plus yards in the first half. They scored on their first three possessions. MCC’s first series was started by a 22-yard Meyer run. Jordan Sturges burst for 34 yards later in the sequence, one capped via Meyer 2-yard TD run (7-0). The 6’1” 160-pound senior then ripped a 59-yard TD run on MCC’s second offensive possession (13-0). With their third, a 37-yard Meyer run was key to a series capped by Carson Lewis 21-yard TD run. With 2:31 left in the second quarter, FC trailed 21-0. But the Falcons changed and tightened things up from there. FC scored on their last possession of the first half, mainly utilizing a 33-yard Bridon Bahl run, then a 19-yard Bahl to Cody Serfling TD pass. Bahl’s improvisation skills would be the focus versus the Rebels with FC in comeback mode. MCC led at the half 21-6. The Falcons then turned a third quarter MCC fumble into points. Bahl hit Quinci Kaase on a 34-yard scoring pass play. But the conversion failed. FC still trailed by two scores, 21-12. And MCC answered a series later, though it was their only score of the second half. An eight-play drive ended just seconds into the fourth quarter via Meyer’s third TD run, a 1-yarder. MCC converted leaving FC down by three scores, 29-12. But Bahl hit Kaase for a second touchdown pass (49-yards) just five-plays later to make it 29-18. Kaase also had a 39-yard run on the series. After holding on an MCC drive, the Falcons frantically kept rallying, going 72 yards in 12 plays. With 0:44 to play, Bahl hit Grant Daniels who scooted in from 15 yards out. FC finally got a conversion to pull within three at 29-26. But the all-important onside kick was recovered by the Rebels, sealing the game. Despite equaling MCC in touchdowns scored, four each, the Falcons fell 29-26. The Rebels scored five points by conversion, FC just two. Bahl, a junior, threw for 238 yards and 4 TDs with one interception (on a 4th and long play). He also ran for 47 yards on 12 carries. Kaase, also a junior, was his favorite target as he amassed nearly 200 yards total offense (6-143 yards, 2 TDs receiving; 4-45 rushing). Daniels (3-41, TD receiving; 4-25 rushing) and Davis Penhollow (3-30 receiving) were ancillary targets. MCC’s running game, and FC’s inability to stop it, was the story, especially early. The Rebels logged 54 carries for 383 yards. Meyer (22-200, 3 TDs rushing), Sturges (4-83 rushing), and Lewis (16-67, TD rushing) did the big work. The Falcons struggled to contain the Rebels’ double-tight, triple-option offense, particularly on perimeter QB-keeps or sweeps. FC did do a better job in the second half (139 rushing yards) versus the first (244 rushing yards). And FC’s offense again put up big numbers, 372 total yards. The Falcons’ season ends at 10-1. It is their third double-digit win season the last three years and they have won at least nine game the last five. They have just five seniors, key assets Kane Larson, Penhollow, Serfling, Brody Niemeyer plus Davion Carey.

Football: #1 and #1 Too Much for Caledonia in the State Quarters

Being a top tier Class AA football program, Caledonia has played against a lot of very good players over the years. In recent memory, Chatfield’s Sam Backer comes to mind. Now starring at MSU-Mankato, Backer was a tough stop. In the first round of the 2025 state tourney, Caledonia (South 4-seed, Section 1A Champ, 9-2) faced another player, probably even better. The Warriors took on #1 in Class AA and defending state champion Jackson County Central (South 1-seed, Section 3AA Champ, 10-0) and the top recruit in the state, University of Minnesota signee, Roman Voss. The Warriors had already seen Voss (who was even recruited by the SEC’s Alabama) in the 2023 in a state quarterfinal. The then sophomore totaled over 200 yards total offense and four touchdowns in a 41-0 Huskie win. A rematch saw the Warriors make a few more plays, but Voss was a beast and Caledonia’s season ended just the same. The 6’4” 230-pound senior QB ran for 192 yards and four first half touchdowns in getting JCC to a 28-7 halftime lead. The first score, an 8-yard run, came after a botched Warrior punt set the Huskies up at the eight-yard-line. Voss scored on a 68-yard run later in the quarter. But the Warriors also intercepted the ballyhooed senior twice in the quarter. Caledonia got on the board early in the second quarter via a 31-yard TD pass from Will Allen to Coby Hammell. Said score made it 14-7 JCC. But Voss authored two more rushing TDs (1 yard, 13 yards) to answer for the three-score halftime lead (28-7). Then, to start the second half, Voss scored his fifth rushing TD (25 yards) to make it 34-7. It was his final carry. A series later, he completed his second of just three passes, a 40-yard score to Evan Bartholomaus. The Warriors added a score in the fourth quarter, a 2-yard run by Noah Schroeder. JCC moved on to the state semifinals by way of a 42-15 victory. Voss (19-256, 5 TDs rushing; 3 for 8, 88 yards, TD, 2 INTs passing) accounted for all six Huskie scores plus a pair of conversion runs. No other Huskie was particularly effective until later in the game. Gage Johnson (13-111 yards) also added some offense, mostly on a 60-yard run late in the fourth quarter. Kade Freking-Leu had a pair of sacks for the Huskies defensively. Will Allen (10 of 24, 113 yards, TD, INT passing), Bo Knutson (8-42, conversion rushing; six kickoff returns, 106 yards), Hammell (3-43, TD receiving), and Zeke Gengler (2-37 receiving) led the Warriors. Gengler and Jacob Klug had interceptions while Tysen Ginther recovered a fumble. Sophomore middle linebacker Cooper Allen had a team-high 12 tackles while forcing a fumble. The Warriors won the turnover battle 3 to 1. Caledonia’s season ends at 8-3. They won seven in a row from week four through the 1AA title game, surrendering a minuscule 42 points in that span. Carl Freuchte’ group graduates 11 seniors, Allen, Gengler, Schroeder, Hunter Frank, Caden Hauser, Aiden Burns, Jack Schmitz, Devon Schulte, Karsen Klug, Maddox Walk, and Anthony Von Arx.