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It didn’t take long for New York Mills to establish some early momentum in their Section 6A quarterfinal round playoff game against West Central Area on Tuesday night in Barrett. After holding the Knights to a 3-and-out on the first possession of the game, sophomore Finn Roder set the tone for the night with a 50 yard punt return for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead after Joseph Mann added the extra point kick. Roder was just getting started. He threw a pair of TD passes, had a 55 yard run from scrimmage and intercepted a pair of passes, one of them in the end zone, before leaving the game with an injury in the third quarter.
A fumble by the Knights on their next possession, gave the Eagles the ball on their own 24 yard line. Seven plays later, with just seven seconds left in the first quarter, Roder connected with Mann on a 14 yard TD pass and Mann made it a 14-0 game at the end of one quarter.
The Knights went on a drive that ended with a Roder interception in the end zone, however, Roder then threw his only interception of the night as Adam Lohse made an acrobatic one-handed catch near mid field. On the first play from scrimmage, Nas Dotts, returning from a season long leg injury, raced 44 yards through the defense for the first WCA score of the night. Brady Lindquist hooked up with Ben Bye on the successful two-point conversion, getting the Knights on the board, trailing 14-7.
Mills was forced to punt after 3 plays on their next possession, however, a Blake Unger interception returned the ball to New York Mills. Six plays later, Roder hit Braxton Ehnert with a 12 yard TD pass. Mann’s extra point kick made the halftime score, 21-8, in favor of the Eagles. An interception return for a touchdown by Teagan Lausten midway through the third quarter put the score at 27-8. Sam Hanson took the ensuing kick-off 70 yards for a TD and the Knights cut the lead to 27-14.
Early in the fourth quarter, Dots hauled in a 26 yard TD pass from Lindquist and the Knights pulled to within 7 points at 27-20. A second Lohse interception gave the Knights hope, however, they went 3-and-out, giving the ball back to the Eagles. New York Mills went 76 yards in 12 plays with Ehnert scoring on a 3 yard run and then connecting with Isaac Kawlewski on the two-point try.
Roder ended the night with 58 rushing yards on 5 carries and completed 4-of-8 passes for 82 yards and a pair of scores. Lausten led the Eagles with 69 rushing yards on 23 attempts. Mann caught two passes for 31 yards, and Ehnertg had 2 receptions for 18 yards. Hunter Bosman hauled in a 50 yard pass early in the game for his only reception.
For WCA, they had 230 yards of offense, 158 through the air. Lindquist was 12-for-22. His top receiver was Dots with 86 yards on 6 catches and ran for 32 yards on 6 carries. Hanson added 2 receptions for 37 yards.
The Knights (3-6) finish up 2023, while the Eagles (3-6) travel to Breckenridge for a 2:00pm semifinal round contest on Saturday at 2:00pm.