The prep football playoffs continued with a full slate of semifinals this week at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis featuring 14 games in three days.
Saturday's state high school football semifinal roundup
The final day of the Minnesota prep football finals featured five games at the home of the Vikings.
November 20, 2021 at 5:35PM
![Mayer Lutheran's Samuel Dennis (20) was brought down by New York Mills' Jonah Johnson (84) in the second half as New York Mills played Mayer Lutheran in a Class 1A semifinal football game Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. ] ANTHONY SOUFFLE • anthony.souffle@startribune.com](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/Z5BLJI7BSYW5KCOOYH6CQ4XSNE.jpg?&w=712)
9 a.m. Minneota 28, vs. Rushford-Peterson 8 (Class 1A): Minneota (13-0) asserted its dominance early, amassing 248 total yards and three touchdowns in the first half while holding the Trojans (12-1) to 54 yards and two turnovers taking a 21-0 lead into the break. Connor Sik scored three touchdowns.
11:30 a.m. Mayer Lutheran 41, New York Mills 6 (Class 1A): Ty Hoese threw five touchdown passes and Mayer Lutheran scored two touchdowns in the first five minutes to take control early against New York Mills.
2 p.m. Plainview-Elgin-Millville 28, Annandale 6 (Class 3A): The Bulldogs (11-2) used a strong drive out of halftime to advance to their first Prep Bowl since winning it all in 2002.
4:30 p.m. Dassel-Cokato 21, Esko 14 (Class 3A): Dassel-Cokato got three touchdowns from running back Eli Gillman, including two in the fourth quarter — the second coming on fourth down with 1:26 to play.
7 p.m. Mankato West 42, Rogers 7 (Class 5A): A dominant defensive performance that included four fumble recoveries, three sacks, two interceptions and two touchdowns sent the Scarlets to a decisive victory.
Five games were played Friday:
9 a.m. Fertile-Beltrami 30, Hills-Beaver Creek 22 (Nine-Man): Everett Balstad, a senior running back and linebacker, scored four touchdowns — three rushing and one receiving — and ran in a two-point conversion for Fertile-Beltrami, which trailed 14-6 at halftime.
11:30 a.m. West Central Area 8, Maple River 7 (Class 2A): West Central Area took the lead when Hunter Norby dropped Maple River running back Bodin Simon a yard deep in the end zone for a safety with 1:04 left the third quarter.
2 p.m. Mahtomedi 34, Cooper 7 (Class 5A): Sharp early in Friday's game, Mahtomedi scored on three consecutive first-half possessions and Cooper, laying without injured quarterback Joseph Russell, struggled to keep place.
4:30 p.m. Hutchinson 36, Orono 6 (Class 4A): The Tigers used their relentless running attack to roll up 332 yards on the ground and put together five touchdown drives.
7 p.m. Lakeville South 40, St. Michael-Albertville 14 (Class 6A): The Cougars turned fumble recoveries into touchdowns early on and rolled from there to stay undefeated.
Star Tribune on Twitter: David La Vaque | Jim Paulsen
Additional coverage:
Who's going to win? Predictions from La Vaque and Paulsen, Part One (Nine-Man, Class 2A, 4A, 6A)
Who's going to win? Predictions from La Vaque and Paulsen, Part Two (Class 1A, 3A, 5A)
Six players plus head coach Garrett Raboin and assistant coach Ben Gordon are from Minnesota. The tournament’s games will be televised starting Monday.
