The first round of the high school football playoffs took place Tuesday night and here is how our local teams fared.
Spectrum 42 Pine City 14
The Pine City Dragons lost their first round playoff game to #3 seeded Spectrum 42-14 Tuesday afternoon. The game was much closer than this and for much of the game Pine City trailed by just one score. The Dragons scored on two different touchdown passes. One was from Konnor Jusczak to Tucker Dalen and the other from Nick Hansmann to Tryston West. Pine City just couldn't stop Spectrum from running the football in the second half and that is where the Sting made Pine City pay. The Dragons ended the season with a 1-8 record.
Braham BYE
The Bombers had a first round bye and have the #2 seed in their section. They will host #3 Blackduck at 2:00 pm on Saturday. That game can be heard on 100.9 FM.
Concordia Academy 25 Rush City 8
Much like the Pine City game, this game was a lot closer than the score would show. Rush City trailed just 13-8 in the 2nd quarter after Cody McFee ran in a 30 yard touchdown for the Tigers. Concordia Academy pulled away late in the 3rd quarter to take down the Tigers. Rush City finished with a record of 2-7.
Hinckley-Finlayson 48 East Central 42
In what was the most exciting game of the night, Hinckley-Finlayson came back from being behind to beat the Eagles by just six points. Heading into the fourth quarter East Central was leading Hinckley-Finlayson 42-26. The Jaguars would go on to score 22 straight points including a go-ahead touchdown with just 46 seconds left. Hinckley-Finlayson moves on to play at Deer River at 2:00 on Saturday. East Central ends the season with a record of 1-8.
Mora 53 Minneapolis Henry 16
The Mustangs remained perfect on the season with a big win over Minneapolis Henry. Mora left no doubt scoring on their first five possessions and forcing turnovers on the Patriots first five possessions. Mora opened up a 39-0 lead at halftime and never looked back. The Patriots didn't get anything going until Mora had already put in their subs. The Mustangs will now host Spectrum at 7:00 on Saturday.
North Branch 52 Grand Rapids 12
The Vikings came to play in the playoffs opening up a 34-0 lead at halftime over Grand Rapids. Grand Rapids added a couple late scores but this game was all North Branch. The Vikings will take on Hermantown on Saturday at 6:00. The Vikings lost to the Hawks 16-6 in the regular season.
Cambridge-Isanti BYE
The Bluejackets had a first round bye. They will host Chisago Lakes on Saturday at 1:00 pm.
