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Eugene-area high school football: Takeaways from the OSAA state quarterfinals

edith noriega, eugene register-guard
·3 min read

The OSAA high school football playoffs are in the final two weeks with a few Eugene-area teams moving on to the state semifinals.

Here are takeaways from this week's games.

Marist quarterback Nick Hudson throws out a pass as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.
Marist quarterback Nick Hudson throws out a pass as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.

Nick Hudson throws 4 TD passes, rushes for one to help Marist beat Mazama

Marist football is one step closer to their goal after they defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A state quarterfinals on Friday.

The second-ranked Marist (10-1 overall) will host No. 3 Seaside (8-3) in the semifinals next Saturday.

Junior quarterback Nick Hudson threw four touchdown passes and rushed for one.

Junior Christian Guerrero caught three of Hudson's touchdown passes. Senior Aiden Hazen rushed for two, while senior Kaden Erlenbush caught a 28-yard TD pass from Hudson.

"I think it just speaks volumes to the type of kid he (Guerrero) is and his preparation during the week," Marist head coach Charlie Landgraf said. "He's one of our hardest practice players, so super proud of Christian. He's been solid all year."

It was a back-and-forth battle between Marist and Mazama early in the game.

Mazama used four plays on its opening drive to jump ahead 7-0.

Marist tied it 7-7 when Hudson connected with Guerrero on a 35-yard touchdown pass on fourth down. The Spartans tied it again 14-14 on a 28-yard TD catch by Erlenbush.

Marist’s Christian Guerrero carries the ball as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.
Marist’s Christian Guerrero carries the ball as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.

Mazama regained a 20-14 lead thanks to Bodie Borlock, who rushed it in for his second touchdown at the end of the first quarter. The Vikings had a chance to hold onto the lead on Kai Hunt's interception in the end zone, but the play was reversed.

Hazen rushed for a 16-yard touchdown, giving Marist a 21-20 lead.

"It was huge," Hazen said on the reversed interception.

Kristopher Baldwin's touchdown catch from 80 plus yards out completed Mazama's scoring efforts for the night.

Marist’s Christian Guerrero makes a touchdown catch as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.
Marist’s Christian Guerrero makes a touchdown catch as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.

Marist led 28-27 at halftime thanks to a big catch from Erlenbush to put the Spartans at the 1-yard line. Hudson then ran it in for the touchdown.

Guerrero added two more touchdown catches in the third and fourth quarters, while Hazen rushed for an 8-yard TD to complete the scoring efforts for Marist.

The star of the night was the Spartans' defense, having shutout the Vikings in the second half.

Marist’s Aaron Bidwell hauls in a long pass as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.
Marist’s Aaron Bidwell hauls in a long pass as the No. 2 Marist Catholic Spartans defeated No. 7 Mazama 48-27 in the Class 4A OSAA state quarterfinals Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene.

Aside from the false start penalties, the Spartans sealed the victory on a backwards interception catch by senior Dennis Jackson Jr. with 8:26 left in the game.

"The defense played lights out in the second half," Landgraf said. "They played tough in the first half too, but we struggled to get stops. Credit to our defensive coordinator Zach Loboy, Dylan Lewis and Jason Martin on our defensive staff and everyone made great adjustments at halftime."

Thurston falls to Wilsonville

No. 8 Thurston fell to No. 1 Wilsonville 49-21 in the 5A quarterfinals on Friday.

The Colts finish the season 8-3 overall.

Henley tops Junction City

No. 1 Henley topped No. 9 Junction City 35-14 in the 4A quarterfinals.

Junction City finishes the season 8-3 overall.

Lowell advances to 2A semifinals

Lowell defeated No. 6 Gold Beach 48-20 in the 2A quarterfinals at Pleasant Hill High School on Friday night.

Sophomore quarterback Carter Harris rushed for a touchdown and connected on two TD passes to senior Rowan Files. JaMar Thurman rushed for two touchdowns.

No. 3 Lowell (10-1 overall) will travel to No. 2 Oakland (10-1) in the semifinals next Saturday.

Elkton downs South Wasco County

No. 3 Elkton defeated No. 6 South Wasco County 58-34 on Friday in the 1A quarterfinals.

Elkton advances to the state semifinals and will play the winner of the No. 2 Powers vs. No. 10 Echo game next Saturday.

Edith Noriega is a sports reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at ENoriega@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @Noriega_Edith.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Marist Spartans football advances to OSAA Class 4A state semifinals