Iowa high school football state quarterfinal rewind: East Buchanan knocks off No. 1 Saint Ansgar for fourth semifinal appearance

East Buchanan Coach Jerry Alden gathered players into a postgame huddle.

He captivated them with a story about watching the second-ranked Buccaneers hit the road and defeat No. 1 Parkersburg, 14-0, in the first round of the 1989 Class 1A football playoffs. Now, they have a similar story to share.

Tanner Thurn rushed for 183 yards and three touchdowns, Hunter Bowers returned an interception for a late score and the Buccaneers defense held top-ranked Saint Ansgar almost 24 points below its season points average for a 30-16 Class A state quarterfinal victory Friday night at Saint Ansgar High School.

“It’s been a long time,” said Alden, whose nephew, Jeff Short, was an all-state running back for the 1989 Buccaneers. “Our kids played well.”

East Buchanan advanced to the semifinals for the fourth time in school history, which includes 1989. It is the second trip in three seasons. The Buccaneers (9-2) will play No. 2 Woodbury Central (11-0) at the UNI-Dome on Thursday at 1 p.m.

“We have a tremendous challenge because Woodbury Central likes to throw the ball as much as we like to run the ball,” said Alden, noting it will be key to move the ball on the ground to keep Woodbury Central all-state quarterback Drew Kluender off the field. “Talk about two polar opposite teams. That’s what it is going to be.

“We’re excited. We’re healthy (and) that’s the main thing. Guys are playing well right now. We like our chances.”

East Buchanan has resembled road warriors the last two rounds, beating the Saints after a 38-7 win at No. 5 Lisbon. They have done it with their trademark run game and hard-nosed defense.

“The big thing with these guys is they have bought in and believed they are a good football team,” Alden said. “They are, coming up here and playing the No. 1 team in the state on the road.”

Thurn, East Buchanan’s all-time leading rusher, played a huge role in the win. He helped the Buccaneers pound the ball, amassing 132 of his yards and two TDs before halftime. He capped a long drive for the game’s first score and an 8-0 lead with about 1:20 left in the first quarter. He added an 8-yard run and 2-point conversion, making it 16-0 with 4:35 left before halftime and capping a drive that started at the Buccaneers 20 and backed up to their own 7 at one point. Thurn added a 15-yard TD run in the final two minutes.

“We found some things and liked the matchups we had,” Alden said. “With (University of Iowa recruit and offensive lineman) Cody Fox up there, we’re going to run behind him and live behind him and we did tonight.

“We got the ball in our playmakers’ hands. You get the ball to Tanner Thurn you’re going to get 3 and 4 yards and hopefully pop one. He played big tonight. He had a tough (183) yards. Those didn’t come easy. There were a lot of YAC (yards after contact) yards when he got the football.”

The Saints (10-1) cut the deficit in half with a Jayce Schwiesow 1-yard run with 4:26 left in the third. Saint Ansgar threatened in the final six minutes, driving to the East Buchanan 36. Bowers plucked a desperation pass on fourth-and-12 pass out of the air and raced 78 yards for a TD for a 22-8 lead with 5:45 left.

“We got that interception by Bowers,” Alden said. “It was huge. We felt pretty good after that.”

East Buchanan’s defense held Saint Ansgar to 10 first-half rushing yards, according to Alden. They negated the Saints’ good field position with two shutout quarters. Despite allowing a touchdown in the final minute, the Buccaneers limited the Saints offense that had averaged 263 rushing yards and 39.7 points per game.

“Credit to our defense because that first quarter, we gave them some short field positions and our defense came up big and huge the whole first half for us,” Alden said. “To hold that team to what we did, it says a lot about our defense playing well.”

East Buchanan faces its third ranked opponent in Woodbury Central. Many of the Buccaneers played on the 2021 semifinal team. They may have been happy to be there two years ago, but they have grander goals.

“This year, we’re here and we’ve been here,” Alden said. “Now, let’s go win a game and that’s the mindset we have.”

MFL MarMac reaches first semifinal

After ending its season in the quarterfinal round each of the previous four seasons, MFL MarMac earned the program’s first semifinal appearance. The Class 1A fourth-ranked Bulldogs defeated No. 5 Iowa City Regina, 22-7, Friday night in Monona.

“It’s surreal,” MFL MarMac’s Wyatt Powell told The Gazette’s Jeff Johnson after the victory. “A great moment for us. A lot of sad seniors because it’s our last home game, but we didn’t want to be done. That was the biggest thing, that’s what our coaches were preaching right away. We don’t want to be done, yet.”

They won’t be. MFL MarMac will face No. 2 Underwood in its UNI-Dome debut next Friday at 1 p.m. A goal accomplished for the Bulldogs and for the communities that reveled in the monumental win.

“It’s kind of hard to take it all in,” MFL MarMac quarterback Carver Blietz-Bentien said. “I’ve never really experienced something like this. We set goals for ourselves before the season. First was a district championship, then it was playoffs. We just went one week at a time, but we knew our end goal was the Dome at all times.”

Powell spearheaded MFL MarMac’s ground game, rushing for 160 yards and two TDs — a 63-yard score to start the second quarter and a 4-yarder in the fourth.

The Bulldogs held Regina well under its season average for points, giving up just a 13-yard touchdown pass from Gentry Dumont to Ty Joss. The Regals were held to 188 yards of offense.

“It feels good, but it’s not about me,” MFL MarMac Coach Dan Anderson said. “It’s about these guys. All these fans, these parents. This is something that’s never been done in school history. It’s been hard the last few years to get so close and not get (to the Dome). It’s been tough, last year was really tough.

“But this defense, we’re tough as nails. To hold those guys to seven points … We’re very physical. It’s about these kids. This is something they’ll remember the rest of their lives.”

Williamsburg outlasts Mount Vernon

Williamsburg hosted Mount Vernon in one of the marquee quarterfinal matchups, regardless of class, and a battle of returning state runners-up. In a back-and-forth battle, the No. 3 Raiders posted a 38-35 win over No. 4 Mount Vernon in a 3A quarterfinal game Friday night at Williamsburg’s Bob Murphy Stadium.

“One of the best (games) I’ve ever been in,” Iowa commit and Raiders senior Derek Weisskopf told The Gazette’s Jeff Linder in a postgame interview. “It’s definitely one game that will jump into my brain and stay there.”

Rayce Heitman had three TDs, catching scoring strikes of 19 and 55 yards and all but sealing the Raiders’ third straight semifinal berth with a 1-yard run for a 38-28 lead late in the third. Weisskopf has stepped in at quarterback this season, completing 9 of 14 pass for 144 yards. He also rushed for 110 yards.

The offenses combined for about 832 yards. Mount Vernon quarterback Joey Rhomberg passed for 315 yards and three TDs. He connected with wide receiver Evan Brase nine times for 117 yards, including a 10-yarder to start the scoring and an 8-yarder to pull within three late. Rhomberg also rushed for a score.

Williamsburg (10-1) will play No. 2 Solon in a semifinal Saturday at 7 p.m. Solon topped West Delaware, 36-35, for its second semifinal appearance in three seasons. The playoff game is a rematch of a regular-season district rematch that Solon won, 21-14, at home.

“You always like to get another chance at a team that beats you,” Williamsburg Coach Curt Ritchie said. “Hopefully, we play better this time.”

Preston Ries powers Monticello

Include Monticello on the list of teams that will play in the state semifinals at the UN-Dome for the first time.

Preston Ries scorched Mediapolis for 551 yards and accounted for all five of the Panthers’ touchdowns in a 34-28 Class 2A quarterfinal victory Friday night at Mediapolis.

Monticello led 21-7 at the half, but Mediapolis tied the game at 21-21 and 28-28. Ries, another Iowa recruit, hit Peyton Schilling for an 8-yard TD pass late for the deciding score. Ries passed for 319 yards, including 235 on eight completions to Ty Tallman. Ries rushed for 232 yards and four touchdowns on 39 carries.

The fourth-ranked Panthers (10-1) will take on No. 2 Van Meter (11-0) on Saturday at 10 a.m.

Comments: kj.pilcher@thegazette.com