Football: Fortune favors the Willmar Cardinals in section seeding
Oct. 19—WILLMAR — What a difference a win can make.
The
Willmar
football team looked set on being the fifth and final seed in Section 2AAAA heading into Week 8. Then with a
36-35 double-overtime victory over Totino-Grace
on Wednesday, the Cardinals earned themselves a first-round bye.
After the coaches' vote Thursday, Willmar (2-6) earned the No. 3 seed and will head to No. 2 Marshall in the semifinals at 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28 at Mattke Field on the campus of Southwest Minnesota State University.
"Winning games allows you to have some good fortune," said Cardinals head coach Jon Konold. "The kids deserved that (win) last night and having that win under our belt and the strength of schedule that we had was able to get us a three seed."
The Section 2AAAA playoffs open Tuesday with No. 4 New Ulm hosting No. 5 St. Peter. The winner of that game takes on top-seeded Hutchinson in the semifinals on Oct. 28.
The section championship takes place on Friday, Nov. 3 at the high seed.
The Cardinals had to take their lumps with a schedule that featured four top-10 teams in the most recent state poll with No. 1 Becker, No. 3 Hutchinson, No. 7 Rocori and No. 10 Princeton. Seven of Willmar's eight opponents had five-plus wins, with five 6-2 teams and an undefeated Becker squad.
"I'm not gonna lie; it's been tough on the players and the coaches and their families," Konold said. "We've made multiple changes to try to fix things and finally, last night, something clicked. The kids kept believing and we were able to squeeze one out last night.
"The extra days of rest and not having to play another game in between helps. We get the weekend to get some of our guys healed up and hopefully we can get some of the kids that didn't play in last night's game back."
With 10 days between games, the Cardinals hope to bounce back against Marshall after the Tigers went to Hodapp Field and beat Willmar 28-21 in Week 2.
"It's a nice rivalry and they've had the better end of it the last couple times," Konold said of Marshall. "They're a really good football program and they've had a really good year again. Every year, they just keep winning games and are in a position to play for a section championship year in and year out.
"Our hope is to get healthy, get a good game plan together for Marshall and have a good week of practice."
A Week 1 win was the deciding factor for
New London-Spicer
getting the No. 1 seed in Section 6AAA.
In the season opener, the Wildcats defeated Albany 48-20. And after finishing a 5-3 regular season, NLS edged Albany for the section's top spot.
"We're super excited to be the one seed," said Wildcats head coach Chad Gustafson. "We definitely earned it by defeating a good Albany team in Week 1 and going through the gantlet of the old Wright County Conference."
NLS gets a first-round bye. The winner of Tuesday's game between No. 5 Minnewaska and No. 4 Sauk Centre travels to New London in the semifinals at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28.
On the other side of the bracket, No. 3 Montevideo hosts No. 6 Melrose on Tuesday. The winner of that game faces No. 2 Albany on Oct. 28.
The 6AAA finals are slated for 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 3 at Rocori High School in Cold Spring.
Section seeding was determined by QRF rating, a formula devised by Minnesota-Scores.net.
Through the regular season, Gustafson said that NLS, Albany and Montevideo have proven themselves to be the top teams in 6AAA. Now, the Wildcats hope to clinch a third straight section championship.
"This team's been through a lot of wars," Gustafson said. "The seniors have been on the team that have won two sections and a state title. And the juniors were part of last year's run. They know what it takes. We just need to hit on all cylinders when the playoffs start."
Going 8-0 in the regular season is quite the accomplishment for
Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa
. But it's not the only thing the Jaguars want this season.
"An undefeated (regular) season is good, but that's not the ultimate goal," said BBE head coach Chris Moscho.
That goal is the state tournament. And that begins in the Section 4A tournament.
Looking to win the section for the second time in three years, the Jaguars earned the No. 1 seed and get a first-round bye due to their QRF rating. They await the winner of Tuesday's game between No. 5 Benson and No. 4 Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City. That semifinal game takes place at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28 in Belgrade.
"A lot of the guys on our team went to state two years ago as 10th graders," said Moscho. The Jaguars have 12 seniors on their roster.
"The amount of experience we have and the maturity this group has is key. Our quarterback (Luke Dingmann) is going to help guide us. And our defense has been solid all year; we don't give up too many points and they make stops time and time again."
The other first-round matchup Tuesday is No. 6 Long Prairie-Grey Eagle at No. 3 Browerville/Eagle Valley. That winner takes on No. 2 Upsala/Swanville Area on Oct. 28.
The section championship is slated for 10 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 3 at the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota.
"Upsala is so tough and they've been tough for a number of years," Moscho said. "Browerville has a history, and ACGC, every time you see their scores, they're putting up huge numbers."
Winners of seven straight,
Litchfield
is the final area team to lock up a top seed.
The Dragons are the No. 1 seed in Section 2AAA. That earned them a first-round bye.
Using a coaches' vote, Litchfield's resume included a 3-0 record against section opponents Dassel-Cokato, Watertown-Mayer and Glencoe-Silver Lake.
"We're very fortunate," said Dragons head coach Jim Jackman. "We have a great group of kids coming through right now and they've worked extremely hard."
Litchfield awaits the winner of Tuesday's game between No. 5 Watertown-Mayer and No. 4 Glencoe-Silver Lake. The semifinal matchup is set for 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28.
"I've been at Litchfield for 26 years and to have a bye in the first round is a big deal," Jackman said.
The other section quarterfinal on Tuesday is No. 6 Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted against No. 3 Rockford. The winner of that game travels to No. 2 Dassel-Cokato on Oct. 28.
The section championship is slated for 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 3 at Buffalo High School.
"Monday and Tuesday is an opportunity for us to come back after a four-day break and put together some things that we need to do to get better, just on our side," Jackman said. "And then we'll get ready for the next team we're going to face."
First round (Tuesday)
5-St. Peter (3-5) at 4-New Ulm (5-3)
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
3-Willmar (2-6) at 2-Marshall (6-2), 3 p.m.
St. Peter/New Ulm winner at 1-Hutchinson (6-2)
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
7 p.m. at high seed
First round (Tuesday)
5-Watertown-Mayer (3-5) at 4-Glencoe-Silver Lake (2-6), 7 p.m.
6-Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted (3-5) at 3-Rockford (7-1), 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
WM/GSL winner at 1-Litchfield (7-1), 2 p.m.
HLWW/Rockford winner at 2-Dassel-Cokato (7-1), 2 p.m.
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
7 p.m. at Buffalo High School
First round (Tuesday)
5-Minnewaska (2-6) at 4-Sauk Centre (2-6), 7 p.m.
6-Melrose (0-8) at 3-Montevideo (5-3), 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
Minnewaska/SC winner at 1-New London-Spicer (5-3), 7 p.m.
Melrose/Montevideo winner at 2-Albany (6-2), 7 p.m.
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
7 p.m. at Rocori High School, Cold Spring
First round (Tuesday)
5-Royalton (2-6) at 4-Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg (5-3), 7 p.m.
6-Paynesville (1-7) at 3-Holdingford (5-3), 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
Royalton/KMS winner at 1-Eden Valley-Watkins (8-0), 2 p.m.
Paynesville/Holdingford winner at 2-Kimball (6-2), 2 p.m.
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
7 p.m. at St. John's University, Collegeville
First round (Tuesday)
5-Benson (1-7) at 4-Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City (5-3), 7 p.m.
6-Long Prairie-Grey Eagle (1-7) at 3-Browerville/Eagle Valley (5-3), 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
Benson/ACGC winner at 1-Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa (8-0), 2 p.m.
LPGE/BEV winner at 2-Upsala/Swanville Area (7-1), 2 p.m.
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
10 a.m. at Fargodome, Fargo, North Dakota
First round (Tuesday)
8-Lakeview (1-7) at 1-Minneota (8-0), 7 p.m.
5-Lac qui Parle Valley (3-5) at 4-Canby (5-3), 7 p.m.
6-MACCRAY (3-5) at 3-Dawson-Boyd (4-4), 7 p.m.
7-Yellow Medicine East (2-6) at 2-BOLD (7-1), 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
Lakeview/Minneota winner vs. LQPV/Canby winner, 3 p.m. at high seed
DB/MACCRAY winner vs. YME/BOLD winner, 3 p.m. at high seed
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
4:30 p.m. at Southwest Minnesota State University, Marshall
First round (Tuesday)
5-Renville County West (1-7) at 4-Nicollet (2-6), 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Saturday, Oct. 28)
RCW/Nicollet winner at 1-Red Rock Central (5-3), 2 p.m.
3-Cedar Mountain (5-3) at 2-New Ulm Cathedral (6-2), 2 p.m.
Championship (Friday, Nov. 3)
7 p.m. at Lakeview High School, Cottonwood
