It’s the final day of the State Football Semifinal weekend at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
Saturday Schedule/Scores:
Class A Semifinals
Final: Springfield 36, Mahnomen/Waubun 12
Final: Belgrade-Brooten/Elrosa 6, Minneota 63
Springfield 36, Mahnomen/Waubun 12.
The first of five games on Saturday was Section 8A Mahnomen/Waubun taking on Section 3A.
The Tigers started fast and furious, with Jacob Nachreiner throwing a perfect pass to find Carter Olson for a 36-yard touchdown. The Tigers scored the following three touchdowns, two in the first half and another in the second, taking a 36-0 lead with 7:21 to play in the third quarter. Jacob Nachreiner had two touchdowns and 209 yards through the air in the game, the touchdowns were caught by Brayden Sturm, and Carter Olson.
“Their quickness killed us, they were fast and strong and got off to a hot start, but I’m very proud of my team and the way they competed,” said Mahnomen/Waubun head coach John Clark Jr.
The Thunderbirds got on the board just over eight minutes into the fourth quarter off a rushing touchdown by Tanner Stech, making the score 36-6.
Mahnomen/Waubun got into the endzone once more but it was too late, the Tigers hung on to win 36-12.
Springfield will head back to the U.S. Bank Stadium on November 24, at 10 a.m. to take on Minneota, who they lost to in the championship game a season ago.
“You have to be happy about today’s win first, enjoy it today, and don’t take it for granted, but come this week we start preparing for the next game,” said Springfield head coach Adam Meyer.
The Tigers will look to get their revenge and hoist a state title right inside the U.S. Bank Stadium.
Carter Olson (#22) had three tackles and one interception for Springfield.More pictures:
Minneota 63, Belgrade-Brooten/Elrosa 6
The defending Class A champion Minneota Vikings look to get back to the title game against the Section 4A champion Belgrade-Brooten/Elrosa inside the U.S. Bank Stadium.
On the Vikings’ first offensive play, Ryan Meagher pounds his way into the endzone on a huge 65-yard touchdown run. That was a popular theme in the first half as Meagher found the endzone three more times for a four-touchdown first half. He now has 13 touchdowns on the ground this year, entering the state semifinal game with 9.
Ryan Meagher running for a 65-yard touchdown to start the game. This was his first of four on the day.On the other side of the ball, the Jaguars’ talented quarterback Luke Dingmann, was unable to throw after popping his shoulder out of place in last week’s game, he was although, able to play wide receiver while backup quarterback Aiden Mueller got the start.
“Mueller was great today, I wasn’t able to throw with my right arm, but I wanted to get into the game in some way,” said BBE’s quarterback/wide receiver Luke Dingmann.
“We gameplaned all week, preparing for all scenarios, so we felt we were prepared for this decision before the game,” said BBE head coach Chris Mscho.
Luke Illies replaced Luke Dingmann at quarterback as Dingmann played WR because of an injury.After a late 57-yard passing score by BBE and a touchdown through the air from Minneota, the Vikings held a 49-6 halftime lead.
The Vikings had eleven different runners, rushing for over 300 yards and combining for six of the Vikings’ eight total touchdowns.
Minneota ran down the clock for the most part in the second half, to secure their large 56-6 victory over BBE.
The Vikings will look to hoist the state title for the second straight season, agasint the same opponent they beat in 2022, Springfield.
“They are a very similar team to us, so we know we are in for another hard-fought game next week,” said Minneota head coach Chad Johnston.
Minneota will face Springfield on Nov. 24 back inside U.S. Bank Stadium at 10 a.m. for the Class A State Championship game.
More Pictures:
