Evan Hull carries Maple Grove over White Bear Lake

Maple Grove football coach Matt Lombardi instructed the postgame crowd of fans around his players to spread into a large circle and directed senior running back Evan Hull to the center.

In keeping with Crimson birthday tradition, Hull held up a football with both hands, fixed his gaze on the pigskin and spun around once for each year. After 18 spins, Hull punted the ball out of the circle to a roar of approval.

More dizzying numbers made Hull the center of attention all Friday night. He ran for 309 yards and three touchdowns in a 28-0 victory over White Bear Lake in the first round of the Class 6A state tournament.

With the victory, Maple Grove (4-5), a No. 4 seed, advances to play next Friday at Lakeville North (9-0), the top-ranked team and a No. 1 seed in Class 6A.

Hull carried 21 times for 168 yards and two scores in the first half, adding a 77-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. His performance outshone all but one of his others this season, a 387-yard, four-touchdown effort in the season opener.

"I feel like during playoff time when there's so much on the line, I turn into a different type of beast," Hull said.

A workhorse back who gets almost 30 carries per game, Hull also possesses great quickness and vision.

"He's a good, hard-nosed kid who will do what it takes," Lombardi said. "He's an all-around great kid, and then you see how great he plays."

White Bear Lake, a No. 5 seed, missed a first-half scoring chance when a fourth-down pass from the 7-yard line fell incomplete.

"I thought our defense did a good job keeping a zero on the board," Lombardi said. "Playoff football, in my opinion, is running the ball and defense."