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MUSTANGS VS STILLWATER - SECTION SEMIFINALS
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| Section 2 AAAAA |
W-L-T
|
PF
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PA
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Totino-Grace |
9 -1 - 0
|
335
|
125
|
| Mounds View |
9-1 - 0
|
224
|
86
|
| White Bear Lake |
7 -3 - 0
|
208
|
176
|
| Stillwater |
7 - 3- 0
|
235
|
160
|
| Irondale |
5 - 4- 0
|
179
|
195
|
| Tartan |
4 - 5 - 0
|
126
|
227
|
| Roseville |
2 - 7 - 0
|
183
|
255
|
| North St. Paul |
2 - 7 - 0
|
119
|
212
|
The Mounds View Mustangs literally snatched victory from the jaws of defeat when receiver Quinn Madsen grabbed quarterback Mike Kerfeld's fade pass in the left corner of the end zone as time expired, propelling our team to a 19-18 win over Stillwater and into the Class 5A Section 2 championship game at Totino-Grace this Friday night, November 4. The winner will advance to the 8-team, Class 5A state championship tournament.
Things looked good early for the Mustangs. On Stillwater's first play from scrimmage, linebacker Lars Anderson forced a fumble that was recovered by defensive back Chris Severson, giving us the ball on the Stillwater 37. Following two Kerfeld-to-Madsen passes for first downs and an 11-yard run by running back Jeremy Redmond, running back Tyler Hansen scored from 2 yards out to give the Mustangs an early 7-0 lead. But our promising start to the game was overshadowed by fumbles on our next three possessions. Unfortunately, two of our turnovers were deep in our own territory and led to two Ponies touchdowns on drives of 10 and 6 yards; fortunately,our defense blocked the kicks on both extra-point attempts, holding the score to 12-7 at the end of the first half. Our defense had a strong first half, forcing three Ponies turnovers, including another fumble, which was forced by outside linebacker Ethan DeCaster and recovered by defensive back Ryan Vijums, and an interception by Anderson that ended Stillwater's longest drive late in the first half.
The game continued to be a defensive struggle for most of the third quarter, with both teams punting or turning the ball over on downs on their first three possessions. But our offense and our offensive line persevered, and began a 5-minute, 14-play, 62-yard drive that started with 2:51 left in the third quarter. On the drive, the Mustangs offensive line did its best run-blocking of the game, opening holes for running backs Austin Smestad, who had an 18-yard run and 27 rushing yards during the drive, and Hansen, who had 13 rushing yards on the drive. The o-line also excelled in its pass blocking on the drive, as Kerfeld completed 2 of 2 passes, including a 7-yard toss to tight end Jason Ortt and a 7-yard completion to Madsen on fourth and 4 from the Stillwater 19. A third pass on the drive drew a pass interference call on the Ponies. When Redmond scored on a 1-yard plunge with 9:32 left in the game, the Mustangs had regained the lead at 13-12.
But the Ponies kept fighting and responded with their best drive of the night--an 11-play, 69-yard drive that culminated in a go-ahead touchdown that made the score 19-13 in favor of Stillwater with just 4:20 left in the game. The Mustangs' ensuing drive was marred by a penalty and a turnover to the Ponies on their own 31 with just 2:14 to play. All Stillwater needed to do to get a victory and end the Mustangs' season was get a first down or two and run out the clock.
Our chances of a victory may have been small at that point in the game, but the Mustangs didn't seem to notice.
The Mustang defense, just as it has done all season, made a critical stop. We limited the Ponies to 5 yards and forced them to punt, which gave us the ball back with 1:00 minute left in the game at our own 28.
At that point, armed with all three timeouts, the Mustang offense took over the game and delivered an historic 8-play, 72-yard touchdown drive. With great protection from our offensive line--Keith Kubitschek, David Le, John Lundeen, Kirk Nelson, Jordan Roth and Paul Sharkey--Kerfeld calmly led us downfield, first completing three consecutive passes to Madsen covering 35 yards and moving us into Stillwater territory at the 37 with 29 seconds left. After an illegal formation penalty, Kerfeld then passed to Smestad, who got a first down and got out of bounds at the Stillwater 29 with 22 seconds left. On the next play, Kerfeld was forced out of the pocket but wisely threw the ball away to stop the clock with 16.1 seconds left. On second down, a pass intended for Hansen appeared to have been broken up by a big hit by Stillwater, but the ball caromed into the waiting arms of Smestad, who was tackled at the 5 yard line. After the chains were reset and the clock was restarted, Kerfeld immediately spiked the ball with 6.1 seconds remaining in the game, making it second and goal from the 5. The next play was an incompletion on a slant. That left 3.5 seconds on the clock and it was third and goal. Although the coaches had called a different play, we agreed to Kerfeld's request to throw a fade pass to Madsen. The Mustang offense executed the play perfectly, and the result was a touchdown that gave us a stunning 19-18 win and one of the most memorable on-the-field celebrations by players and fans in Mustang Stadium history.
The coaches are extremely happy for the players and the fans, whose unwavering support was rewarded with one of the most exciting football games in memory. Our satisfaction with the win is tempered by the fact we had more turnovers and penalties than Stillwater, which played a great game. Our celebration of the victory also must give way to preparation for a very tough matchup against perennial Class 4A powerhouse Totino-Grace, who this year moved up to Class 5A for sectionals. The Eagles have size, strength and speed, as well as a proud football tradition and one the best coaching staffs in the state. To get to the Class 5A Section 2 finals, they defeated a very good White Bear Lake team last Saturday night by a 28-0 score. We expect to see thousands of Mustang fans in the visitor bleachers this Friday night. Regardless of whether we outnumber the Eagles fans, let's make sure they Remember the Mustangs.