MCC FOOTBALL TEAM ADVANCES TO SECTION FINALS

The MCC Rebel Football team opened the Section 3A playoffs at home against the Russell Tyler Ruthton Knights Saturday afternoon at 3:00 pm. The Rebels edged out the Knights for the second seed in the section and a bye in the first round after beating the Knights in the regular season, though each team ended the year 6-2. RTR beat BOLD on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals to play the Rebels. The winner on Saturday would advance to play for a Section Final on Halloween.

The game began with RTR getting the ball first and they looked good, marching down the field to score in less than two minutes. Garrett Elton began the game with a big catch, putting the Knights in Rebel territory and three plays later, Gavin Schruers threw a pass that was snagged by Brayden Chandler to finish with a 26 yard touchdown pass. The extra point was good and RTR had the lead 7-0. The fast start had RTR in front. The Rebels offense came up empty in the first quarter with a couple of turnovers on downs. After the Knights scored quickly, their offense regressed to a pair of turnovers. RTR led after the first 12 minutes 7-0.

The second quarter, things would turn around for MCC. The Rebels failed to score on a 4th down inside the 5 yard line. RTR got the ball and after a penalty, Gavin Schruers struggled to handle a snap. He was tackled for a safety by Quintin Lewis. The Rebels were down 7-2 with 11:46 to play in the first half. The Rebels got the free kick and the run game started to churn out yards but first downs. Gabe Tentinger came up with a key run, Carson Lewis started to pick up chunks of yards on each run. Lewis would give the Rebels the lead on a 13 yard touchdown run and the Aubin Licht extra point put the Rebels ahead 9 to 7. The Rebels were not done scoring in the first half. With just over a minute to go in the half and the ball at the 48 yard line, Carson Lewis out-sprinted the Knights for a touchdown, The extra point was no good, making the score 15 to 7. The Knights drove the ball back to the MCC 30 yard line looking to score. With ten seconds to go, Schruers looked to throw for a first down but Teague Meyer intercepted the pass and returned it 80 yards for the touchdown with no time left on the clock. The Rebels failed to score on a two point conversion making the score 21 to 7 at the half.

MCC began the second half with the football and though their first drive did not result in a touchdown, it did end in points. Aubin Licht kicked a 27 yard field goal, finishing a drive that took up almost half the quarter. The Rebels got the ball back after a three and out by the Knights and the next drive took only one play. Carson Lewis sprinted 45 yards for his third touchdown of the game and the Rebels went ahead 31 to 7. The Rebels continued the domination of the second half in the 4th quarter. The Rebels ran a play action pass and Brayden Gilb made the catch and with one move, finished the play in the end zone for a 38 yard touchdown. The Rebels’ score put them ahead 38 to 7. Max Mathiason added the final score of the game on a 12 yard touchdown run with over three minutes to go in the game. The Rebels won the game 45 to 7.

The Rebels were led by Carson Lewis who finished the game just shy of 200 yards and three touchdowns. Teague Meyer completed 3 of 5 passes for 77 yards and a touchdown. Jordan Sturges had a solid game for the Rebels with over 40 yards receiving and two catches for 39 yards. The MCC Rebels will play Springfield for the Section 3A title on Friday the 31st at 12:30 pm at the Regional Event Center in Marshall. The winner will qualify for the State Tournament.