The regular season is finished and now we know where each team will be in the section playoffs. First round of the playoffs are Tuesday, October 22nd at 7:00.
Pine City 2-6
QRF Ranking: 29th in State 5th in Section 5AAA
The Pine City Dragons will travel to take on #4 Milaca. Pine City went in to the last week of the season holding on to the #4 seed and a home playoff spot, but with the loss to MLWR the Dragons drop to fifth and will travel for the first round.
Mora 6-2
QRF Ranking: 10th in State 2nd in Section 5AAA
The Mustangs finished the season with a loss to Aitkin and were not able to capture the division title. The Mustangs will be the #2 seed for the second straight year with Annandale grabbing the #1 spot. Mora will host a first round matchup with #7 Brooklyn Center.
Braham 7-1
QRF Ranking: 11th in State 2nd in Section 7A
Section 7A is a coaches vote section and the Bombers ended up with the same seed they would have if it would be QRF seeded. The Bombers lone loss of the season was to the #1 seed Deer River, but it was close 20-12. Fans will await to see if those two teams meet each other in the playoffs which would be a shootout. But first Braham hosts #7 Barnum who they beat 58-0 earlier this year.
Hinckley-Finlayson 4-4
QRF Ranking: 33nd in State 3rd in Section 7A
Hinckley-Finlayson will end up with a #3 seed and a familiar opponent in the first round. The Jaguars host #6 East Central. The Jaguars defeated them 20-0 earlier in the season. A win against East Central would likely pit them against rival Braham in the semifinals.
East Central 2-6
QRF Ranking: 48th in State 6th in Section 7A
East Central is the #6 seed for Section 7A and luckily they won't have to travel far for their first round matchup against Hinckley-Finlayson. The Eagles will try to play spoiler and pull off an upset in the first round.
Rush City 6-2
QRF Ranking: 25th in State 6th in Section 4AA
Rush City finished off a very successful season claiming victory in six games this year. The Tigers will be very pleased with their regular season. Unfortunately they are in a section that boasts the top three teams in the state in QRF rankings. Rush City will have to travel to take on #3 St. Agnes in the first round.
North Branch 3-5
QRF Ranking: 32nd in State 3rd in Section 7AAAA
North Branch holds to the #3 seed in the section for the second straight year. They will host Duluth Denfeld who they defeated 59-14 just over a week ago.
Cambridge-Isanti 1-7
QRF Ranking: 42nd in State 5th in Section 7AAAAA
The Bluejackets showed some regression this season after last year's State Tournament team. They were only able to pull off one victory this year. They will travel to St. Francis for their first round game. This will be the second straight game against these two teams and the Fighting Saints got the better of the Bluejackets 31-28 in the first matchup.
