Football: Teams Grab Titles, Big Week Eight Games Set

Week seven of the football season had Fillmore Central and Chatfield winning to ensure they at least shared district titles. Lanesboro and Spring Grove each won to force a week eight battle for that district’s title. Plus, R-P won its fifth straight. They too have a big week eight game. Caledonia also has a big season finale.

#4 Falcons Blast W-K, Ensure MSE-Blue Share

It was the best opponent to play if a win meant sharing a sub-district title. Mid-Southeast-Blue leader, #4 in Class A, Fillmore Central (5-0, 6-0) trekked to Wabasha had pounded W-K (0-5, 0-6). FC never punted, scoring on 10 of 13 possessions. They led 48-6 at halftime and won 66-14. Seven different Falcons scored rushing touchdowns, two threw TD passes. FC also had a pick-six. Bryce Corson (4-87, TD rushing, 15-yard TD reception, 25-yard TD pass, 51-yard interception return TD) scored four different ways. His TD run was 55 yards.

Dillon O’Connor (5 of 11, 76 yards, TD passing, 2-yard TD run, 25-yard TD reception) scored three different ways. Kyle Daniels (5-70, TD rushing), Anthony Kiehne (3-39, TD rushing), Chase Christianson (19-yard TD run), Jake Fishbaugher (9-yard TD run), and Kane Larson (5-yard TD run) all authored ground scores. FC ran for a season-best 314 yards while topping 400 yards total offense. Corson, Kiehne, and Cody Serfling all had interceptions. Chris Mensink’s group (6-0, 7-0) will have to beat Cotter (1-5, 1-6) in week eight to ensure the MSE-Blue title out-right. Second-place squads Rushford-Peterson (5-1, 6-1) and Faribault B.A. (5-1, 5-2) play each other.

#1 Gophers Post Post- Caledonia Win Over Snakes

Week six saw #1 in AA Chatfield post a huge 19-6 win over #3 in AA Caledonia. For the Gophers week seven match-up, they trekked to Triton for a match-up with the Cobras (2-2, 3-3). It wasn’t their best game of the year. They tallied a season low 229 yards total offense. Chatfield had posted over 300 in every other game. But they can still block a little, and Sam Backer can run the ball a lot, and thus the verdict was still one-sided in the Gophers favor. The senior scored all five of Chatfield’s touchdowns, as the Gophers posted the 35-0 win. They led 21-0 at halftime. He had TD runs of 9, 18, 1, 1, and 40 yards. Backer (23-182, 5 TDs rushing, 3 of 6, 36 yards, INT passing) had a vast majority of Chatfield’s offensive yards. No other Gopher completed a pass or had more than 20

yards. Triton ran more plays (47 to 40) but were held to 133 yards total offense. Each team had eight first downs. It was Chatfield’s second shutout of the season. They’ve surrendered just three total touchdowns the last five games. Jeff Johnson’s group (5-0, 7-0) thus have clinched a share of the Southeast-White over Caledonia (5-1, 6-1). Dover-Eyota (3-2, 5-2) beat Goodhue (3-2, 4-3) in week seven. Said teams are tied for third place.

First Half Ending Aids #2 Burros to Controlling Mabel-Canton

In a battle of a ranked team, #2 Lanesboro (5-0, 6-0), and a team receiving votes for state, Mabel-Canton (4-1, 5-1), the favored Burros used some late first-half scoring to build a two-score halftime lead. They then suppressed an M-C third quarter push before coasting in the biggest game between the two rivals in some time. M-C was game in the first half, getting a pair of big plays from Cayden Tollefsrud (76-yard TD run, 96-yard kickoff-return TD). The Cougars led 14-8 and then 22-16 in the second quarter. An Orion Sass 36-yard TD run tied the contest at 22-22 with 3:32 left in the stanza. However, the Burros improbably scored twice more before halftime. A nine-play drive went 79 yards in 1:12. Sass’s fourth rushing TD of the half, plus conversion run, made it 30-22 (0:19). But M-C’s first offensive play from midfield was a batted-pass-interception (by lineman Brock Taylor). It was returned to the Cougar 20. The Burros were then able to score in just 12-seconds. Hayden Lawstuen’s 2-yard TD on the final play of the half (which started with 0:01 on the clock), plus Sass conversion, had the Burros up 38-22 at half. M-C scored off a turnover in the third quarter to make it 38-30. But two plays into Lanesboro’s next series, QB Mason Howard broke off a 2nd and 16, 70-yard TD run to put Lanesboro up 44-30. They tacked on a couple more TDs in the fourth to post a 57-30 victory. Sass (22-204, 4 TDs, four conversions) killed M-C before only seeing four second half carries (cramping). He had over 200 yards and all of his scores in the first half. Howard (14-150, TD rushing, 5 of 10, 94 yards, TD passing) hit Luke Ruen for a 45-yard TD pass. Lawstuen (4-26, TD rushing) and Will Harvey (4-19, TD rushing) also found the end zone. Tollefsrud (12-114, TD rushing) led M-C on the ground. Much of his yardage came on the one run. He has multiple kick-off return TDs this year. T-Larson (9-46, TD, three conversions rushing) also scored. Underbakke (4 of 7, 94 yards, TD, INT) hit Jordan Larson (3-89, TD receiving) for a 40-yard first half TD pass. The Burros had 21 first downs, M-C 10. Lanesboro (6-0, 7-0) has a huge match-up with #6 Spring Grove (7-0, 7-0) in week eight. M-C (4-2, 5-2) has losses to two ranked foes.

#6 Lions/Solum Pass Past Knights

Spring Grove junior quarterback Elijah Solum threw four first half TD passes and added a fifth TD on the ground, as the sub-district leading Lions (6-0, 6-0) jumped out on Kingsland (3-2, 3-3) and never looked back. SG put the first six touchdowns on the board, and Solum had a hand in all six. He hit Caleb Griffin (66-yards), Ethan Crouch (25-yards), and Tysen Grinde (46-yards) for first quarter scores. SG needed only five

plays while scoring on its first three possessions, all passes. Solum then hit Jaxon Stinmoen (37-yards) late in the second quarter. The SG QB also authored a 4-yard TD run in the second quarter and capped SG’s scoring with a 12-yard TD on their first drive of the third quarter which made the score 41-0. Kingsland scored all its points after that, getting TD runs by Mason Kolling (5-yards), Kale Mensink (2-yards), and Kaaleem Reiland (5-yards). The final was 41-20. The Knights were burdened by five turnovers including on their first three possessions. Four of their five first half possessions ended in turnover. Solum (13 of 17, 266 yards, 4 TDs passing, 7-27, 2 TDs rushing) accounted for six total TDs. He hit four different receivers for score; Grinde (5-95, TD receiving), Griffin (4-86, TD receiving), Strinmoen (2-44, TD receiving), and Crouch (3-42, TD receiving). Griffin, Crouch, and Noah Blackburn had fumble recoveries, Strinmoen and Jacob Olerud interceptions. Reiland (9-69, TD rushing, 2-36 receiving), Mensink (13 of 19, 110 yards, 2 INTs passing, 1-yard TD run), Beau Wiersma (19-45 rushing, 5-29 receiving), Ayden Howard (4-45 receiving), and Kolling (4-yard TD run) did work for Kingsland. SG (7-0, 7-0) won last year’s game 20-19. They’ll face Lanesboro in week eight in a battle of ranked, perfect teams for the South-East title. Kingsland fell to 3-3, 3-4.

Trojans Harvest Eight Turnovers in Winning Fifth Straight

It is harvest season. Rushford-Peterson (4-1, 5-1) football took that to heart in their match-up with Hayfield (2-3, 2-4). The Vikings might’ve had an upset chance, if not for nine turnovers. The Trojans led the Vikings 21-13 at halftime, but held Hayfield scoreless after intermission. The Vikings were still in the game even after a four turnover first half. But they had five second half fumbles. Five straight drives ended in turnover. The biggest miscue was late in the third quarter with the score still 21-13. Hayfield coughed it up in the red zone. Trojan junior Titan Tekautz picked it up and returned it 84-yards to paydirt, giving the Trojans some breathing room, up 28-13. R-P added a late touchdown to make the final score 35-13. Hayfield out-gained R-P 240 to 194, but couldn’t win losing the turnover battle 9 to 2. Jonah Bunke (21-82 rushing) led the Trojan ground game. Grady Hengel (8-28, 2 TD rushing) had two ground scores. Tekautz added a 1-yard TD run. Dalton Hoel authored an 89-yard kick-off return TD in addition to leading the Trojans in receiving (5-49 receiving). Hayfield was led by Ethan Pack (10 of 23, 151 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs passing) and Isaac Matti (2-83, 2 TDs receiving). The Vikings were held to 89 yards on 31 carries in the ground game. R-P converted just 1 of 11 third downs, Hayfield 2 of 10. Davin Thompson’s group (5-1, 6-1) sits tied for second place in the MSE-Blue with Faribault B.A. (5-1, 5-2), their week eight foe. R-P received votes for state in the latest Associated Press poll.