Owen-Gage 28, Posen 20:
The Bulldogs made the four-hour trip to Posen and came away with a win, ending their season with an 8-1 record. Jacob Warack sealed the victory with a key fourth-quarter interception for Owen-Gage, which trailed 14-12 at halftime. David Binder rushed 21 times for 111 yards and one touchdown for Owen-Gage, while Adam Retford rushed 24 times for 94 yards and two touchdowns. Jake Wright completed four of seven passes for 65 yards and a touchdown. Dylan Fritz led the Bulldog defense with 11 tackles and two assists. Dan Good added five tackles and two assists. Ryan Warack made five tackles and an assist, while Retford totaled four tackles, two assists and recovered a fumble.
Marlette 34, Armada 27:
The Red Raiders staged a great comeback over the visiting Tigers to clinch their second playoff berth in a row. After falling behind 13-0 at the half, Marlette charged back, scoring 20 points in the third and 14 points in the fourth, including a game-winning 50-yard touchdown toss from Jarod Lentz to Connor Thomas with 1:04 left in the game. Thomas, the “Rad Raider,” carried the Marlette offense all night with 167 yards rushing, and 90 yards receiving. The Red Raiders finish the year with a 6-3 record, guaranteeing a spot in the playoffs.
Millington 28, Croswell-Lexington 26:
The Cardinals — after suffering their first loss of the season last week — bounced back with a road win over the Pioneers. Millington was led by quarterback Caleb Wascher, who accounted for 170 yards and had two touchdowns on the ground and through the air. The Cardinals totaled 348 rushing yards, including 177 yards from Chase Maxon. Millington finishes the regular season 8-1, and has now made the playoffs 11 years in a row.
Whittemore-Prescott 48, Reese 20:
The Rockets dropped their final game of the season in a road loss to the undefeated Cardinals. Reese had a nice game offensively, totalling 301 yards on the night, but had trouble stopping the Cardinal rushing attack, as the hosts racked up 480 yards on the ground. Reese was led by Jacob Galsterer with 112 rushing yards, and by Mitchell Bender with 84 rushing yards. The Rockets finish the season at 1-8 overall.
Genesee 57, Mayville 36:
Mayville trailed 36-14 at halftime but kept fighting in the second half at Genesee, cutting the lead to 49-36 late in the fourth quarter. “We battled right back and made a game out of it,” Mayville coach Mike Campbell said. Jake Lefler rushed for 134 yards on 22 attempts for Mayville, with Brandon Blasius compiling 78 yards on only two attempts for the Wildcats. Blasius also returned the game’s opening kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown to give Mayville the lead.Wildcat quarterback Cole Coutcher completed 12-of-19 passes for 111 yards and one touchdown. Andrew Morrison led the Wildcats in receiving, totaling 60 yards on seven receptions. Dalton Bailey added 34 yards on three catches.Tim Diller was credited with 6.5 tackles to lead the Mayville defense. Coutcher recovered a fumble for Mayville, which finishes the year with a 2-7 record.
Kington 60, Caseville 20:
Kingston quarterback Aaron Van Horn threw for five touchdown passes and ran for another to lead the Cardinals to a 60-20 road victory. Kingston’s Kylan Pennington caught five passes for three touchdowns, while Travis Tucker caught three passes for 116 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman quarterback Garrett Green completed a touchdown pass for the Cardinals, while teammate Jake Edwards caught a touchdown pass.Pennington led Kingston with six tackles, with Van Horn and Bo Mickelson making five tackles apiece.Kingston finishes the season with a 6-3 record and finds out its playoff opponent on Sunday.
Laker 14, Beal City 13:
A late sack by Mauricio Diaz-Reyes helped seal a perfect season for Laker High over Beal City in a game played at Saginaw Valley State University.Beal City led at half 13-8 behind two rushing touchdowns from Luke Farrell. But Laker High struck late in the third quarter on Dustin Kady’s second rushing touchdown of the night, after back-to-back 15-yard penalities against Beal City.The Lakers were led offensively by Kady who run for 102 yards on 19 rushing attempts for two touchdowns. Terrance Dubs and Austin McCabe contributed eight tackles apiece on defense for the winners.Lakers finished the season undefeated at 9-0, claiming the Great Thumb Conference’s West Division, and now looks to make a deep playoff run.
North Branch 30, Yale 8:
The Broncos ended their season on a high note, knocking off the rival Bulldogs. Yale was 6-2 entering the game and ranked seventh in Division 4. Kurt Garza was the man of the night for North Branch, catching five passes for 98 yards and a touchdown, and also had two interceptions on defense. The Bronco defense was strong all night holding the high-powered Yale offense to 194 total yards, and forcing four turnovers. Gabe Wells had a nice night running the ball for North Branch, gaining 190 yards on only 13 carries. Austin Bowling had 10 tackles, and Trevor Burhans added nine for North Branch, which finishes the year at 4-5.
Harbor Beach 48, USA 0:
The Patriots fell victim to a great Pirate football team. Tanner Foley threw for 76 yards, Dominic Guardian had nine catches for 70 yards, and Ryan Millerwise rushed for 56 yards on 13 carries. USA finishes the season 1-8.