Eastern Iowa high school football capsules: The quarterfinals

Capsules on Gazette area football playoff quarterfinals. All kickoffs are 7 p.m. Friday.

CLASS 4A

No. 6 Cedar Falls (9-1) at No. 1 Iowa City West (10-0)

How they got here — Cedar Falls pulled away in the second half and defeated No. 7 Cedar Rapids Prairie, 28-7. West jumped all over Cedar Rapids Washington in the first half and rolled, 49-7.

Overview — If this game resembles the regular-season meeting, it will be worth twice the price of admission. West rallied and beat the Tigers in overtime in Week 3, 32-31, at the UNI-Dome. The Trojans are the lone unbeaten in 4A and rushed for 381 yards in their pasting of Washington in the first round. West is averaging 44.9 points per game but runs into a Tigers defense that allows 8.4, a rate that is second-best in 4A. Sam Gary has rushed for 1,481 yards and 18 TDs for the Tigers.

CLASS 3A

Davenport Assumption (8-2) at No. 1 Cedar Rapids Xavier (10-0)

How they got here — Assumption rallied from an early 11-point deficit and beat Washington (Iowa), 45-28. Xavier stomped Oskaloosa, 43-10.

Overview — Xavier's stingy defense will try to corral an Assumption outfit that has posted 40-plus points in each of its last five games. The Saints are allowing 7.1 points per contest, and that defense is led by McClain Burger (38 tackles, four interceptions, two fumble recoveries). Assumption has a very good two-pronged running attack; Ryan Wohlers has rushed for 1,112 yards and 14 touchdowns, Jayce Levy has added 987 and 20. Xavier QB Quinn Schulte has 14 touchdowns on the ground and 12 in the air.

West Delaware (8-2) at No. 3 Solon (10-0)

How they got here — West Delaware scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns and rallied past No. 8 Waverly-Shell Rock, 20-13. Solon posted another dominating defensive effort and ousted Decorah, 34-2.

* Overview — After scoring a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to rally past Waverly-Shell Rock, 20-13, in the first round, West Delaware will try to do what nobody else has done and put a dent in Solon's seemingly impenetrable defense. The Spartans have allowed 23 points in 10 games. The Spartans' defense has allowed three touchdowns and has scored seven (two on Coal Flansburg interceptions). West Delaware quarterback Nick Casey has 1,835 yards and 14 touchdowns to his credit, with Tyler Kelley catching 55 balls for 810 yards.

CLASS 2A

No. 5 Waukon (9-1) at No. 10 New Hampton (8-2)

How they got here — Waukon earned a surprisingly easy win at Clear Lake, 46-16. New Hampton outlasted Dike-New Hartford, 21-14.

Overview — These teams met in a non-district game in Week 2 with Waukon earning a 28-20 road win. It's one of five New Hampton games decided by one possession (the Chickasaws won three, including last week's first-round victory). Waukon is the top-scoring team in 2A, putting up 47.3 points per game. Mitchell Snitker has rushed for 1,520 yards and 20 touchdowns, and also has five interceptions and two fumble recoveries on defense. Abe Schwartz has 1,889 passing yards and 20 TDs for the Indians.

No. 9 Union Community (7-3) at No. 2 Cascade (10-0)

How they got here — Union knocked out district-champion Aplington-Parkersburg, 42-0. Cascade eliminated West Liberty, 49-21.

Overview — A lot of familiarity here, because they met in a thriller two weeks ago: Cascade scored in the final seconds and prevailed, 28-21, preserving its status as the only 2A team to go unbeaten in the regular season. Now, they meet again. Cascade's 10.9-point defensive average is best of the remaining 2A squads. The Cougars will have their hands full with Union's passing attack, led by QB Troy Hanus, who completes about 60 percent of his throws and has thrown for 1,815 yards and 20 TDs — 10 to Koby Alpers.

Williamsburg (8-2) at No. 3 Mount Vernon (9-1)

How they got here — Williamsburg edged No. 4 Monroe PCM, 18-17, in a minor upset. Mount Vernon got off to a slow start against Centerville, but sped away late and prevailed, 42-10.

Overview — Like Union-Cascade, this is a rematch from Week 9. Mount Vernon won that game, 42-14, as Drew Adams passed for five touchdowns (four to Blake Booth) and became the state's all-time leader in TD passes for a career. He has 31 this season, and 1,913 yards, and five different Mustangs have at least 295 receiving yards. Williamsburg, meanwhile, relies on its line and the legs of Gage Hazen-Fabor, whose 2,030 rushing yards is tops in all classes of 11-player football. Hazen-Fabor has 21 touchdowns and a 9.5-yard average.

CLASS 1A

No. 10 Wilton (9-1) at No. 3 Iowa City Regina (8-2)

How they got here — Wilton went to No. 7 Bellevue and came away with a 28-14 win. Regina survived a major scare against South Winneshiek, prevailing, 27-21, in double overtime.

Overview — Regina won its eighth straight game last week, but had to sweat it out before outlasting South Winn and avoiding a rare early exit. Isaac Vollstedt scored the game-winner on a 10-yard touchdown run in the second overtime. Regina pounded Wilton, 49-7, in Week 6. The Beavers have won four straight since, with last week's victory the most impressive. Wilton recorded five takeaways at Bellevue, including interceptions for touchdowns by Jerome Mays and Chantz Stevens.

8-PLAYER

No. 9 Tripoli (9-1) at Midland (8-2)

How they got here — Tripoli defeated Riceville for the second time this season, 28-18. Midland whipped Janesville, 42-7.

Overview — A lot of the hubbub around Midland this season has been centered around the prolific running of Austin Smith, and rightfully so. Smith has rushed for 2,533 yards (10.6 per carry) with 43 touchdowns. But the Eagles have discovered a stern defense in recent weeks, allowing just 33 points in the last four games. In the world of 8-player football, that's impressive stuff. Tripoli won its first eight games, was bombed by Don Bosco, then bounced back last week.

HLV (9-2) at No. 1 Don Bosco (10-0)

How they got here — HLV avenged a regular-season loss to Lone Tree in convincing style, 59-22. Don Bosco drilled Moravia, 62-0.

Overview — After starting 1-2, HLV has won eight in a row including last week's table-turning rout of Lone Tree. Brandon Schafbuch and Chase Sternhagen have rushed for 1,059 and 1,028 yards, respectively, with 44 touchdowns between them. Two of Don Bosco's wins have been via forfeit. In the eight games the Dons have played, they have averaged 68.8 points per game while allowing 17.9. Four different Dons have rushed for 500 yards this season, and Wyatt Sawvell has a 20-to-2 TD-to-INT passing rate.

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