Maquoketa Valley outlasts North Linn in the mud, 22-15

DELHI — Lance McShane was operating with only one good eye.

“I was half-blind out there,” he said.

Both legs were fully functional, though. And that was the important thing.

McShane scored the go-ahead touchdown, a 5-yard surge on fourth-and-4 with 4:04 left, and Maquoketa Valley out-mudded North Linn, 22-15, in a Class A District 4 football showdown Friday night at Maquoketa Valley High School.

Somewhere in the muck, you’ll find a contact lens. It had been in McShane’s left eye until early in the third quarter, when it became dislodged.

“My vision is pretty bad,” he said. “If I would lose both of them, I wouldn’t be able to see three feet in front of me.”

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Photos: North Linn vs. Maquoketa Valley high school football

So now it’s a three-way tie atop the A-4 standings: Maquoketa Valley (6-1 overall), Starmont (6-1) and East Buchanan (5-2) all are 5-1 in the district.

All have clinched a playoff berth.

The Wildcats conclude the regular season with another biggie, at Starmont next week.

North Linn (5-2, 4-2) rallied from an early 14-0 deficit, taking a 15-14 lead early in the second quarter.

It was still stuck at 15-14 when Maquoketa Valley got the ball with 7:21 left, 67 muddy yards away from the end zone.

The drive began with a 6-yard pass from Dylan Wall to Taten Infort.

Then, it was a steady diet of McShane, i.e., One Eye Blind.

“At that point, you go behind your best players and you give it to your best player,” Wildcats Coach Scot Moenck said.

McShane ripped off a 36-yarder on the first carry of the drive, to the North Linn 25. Then it was a series of short runs, until the Wildcats faced fourth-and-4 from the 5.

The fateful play:

“A heavy formation,” McShane said. “Basically, two fullbacks lead for me.”

They led him into the end zone.

After a carbon copy on the two-point conversion made it 22-15, the Lynx reached the Maquoketa Valley 19 before the drive stalled.

Maquoketa Valley needed two plays to march 56 yards on its first drive of the game; Wall ran for 26, then McShane finished it with a 30-yard score (and two-point conversion).

Wall’s interception and 65-yard return made it 14-0, six minutes into the game.

“(Breckyn) Betenbender was going to get the ball. I saw him drop his hips,” Wall said. “I broke down, saw the ball, picked it off and tucked it away.”

North Linn answered immediately on Cole Griffith’s 75-yard kickoff return for a score, then Griffith caught a 25-yard TD pass from Jake Van Etten. Betenbender’s two-point run put the Lynx in front, 15-14, with 11:55 left in the first half.

It was a scoreless slog after that.

Still leading 15-14 in the fourth quarter, the Lynx had a chance to apply the dagger with first-and-goal from the 4.

But a high snap cost them 17 yards, the drive ended at the 33 and Maquoketa Valley made its fateful march.

McShane entered the game with a state-high 1,555 yards, but was met with resistance Friday. He finished with 155 yards on 31 carries.

And partial vision.

Van Etten passed for 209 yards, including 128 to Betenbender, on 11 receptions.

North Linn hosts Bellevue next week, with the winner qualifying for the playoffs.

Maquoketa Valley 22, North Linn 15

At Delhi

TEAM STATISTICS

First downs: NL 19, MV 11

Rushes-yards: NL 35-55, MV 42-174

Passing yards: NL 209, MV 49

Passing: NL 19-30-2, MV 6-9-1

Total yards: NL 264, MV 223

Fumbles-lost: NL 1-1, MV 1-0

Punts-average: NL 1-16.0, MV 1-26.0

Penalties-yards: NL 5-50, MV 7-80

SCORING SUMMARY

North Linn 7 8 0 0 — 15

Maquoketa Valley 14 0 0 8 — 22

MV — Lance McShane 30 run (McShane run)

MV — Brady Wall 65 interception return (run failed)

NL — Cole Griffith 75 kickoff return (Theo Boss kick)

NL — Griffith 25 pass from Jake Van Etten (Breckyn Betenbender run)

MV — McShane 5 run (McShane run)

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing

North Linn — Jake Van Etten 17-49, Breckyn Betenbender 10-19, Landen Helmrich 7-4, Team 1-(minus 17). Maquoketa Valley — Lance McShane 31-155, Brady Wall 5-22, Dylan Knipper 3-5, Taten Intorf 1-(minus 6), Team 2-(minus 2).

Passing

North Linn — Van Etten 19-30-2-209. Maquoketa Valley — Wall 6-9-1-49.

Receiving

North Linn — Betenbender 11-128, Cole Griffith 6-53, Helmrich 1-21, Cael Benesh 1-7. Maquoketa Valley — Intorf 3-5, Anderson Holtz 1-37, Lukas Chestnut 1-5, Knipper 1-2.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com