GRANITE FALLS - Hawley struck it rich Friday. The Nuggets' lightning-quick running game polished off 439 yards - 245 by Cory Mattson - to blank Yellow Medicine East 38-0 in the opening round of the Class AA State Tournament.
With Mattson needing only the slimmest of holes to run rampant and produce four touchdowns, Hawley stymied the YME (9-3) defense with its explosive ground attack. The No. 6 Nuggets (12-0) ran 69 offensive plays with 65 coming on the ground.
"I can see why they stayed with Pierz last year," said YME coach Dave Brokke, referring to the state semifinals. "We saw only one game of them on film, but they were better than I thought."
The Nuggets will take on Caledonia (12-0) in the semifinals next Saturday at 12:45 p.m. in the Metrodome. A rematch against Hawley and Pierz could take place in this year's Prep Bowl as the two are in the opposite brackets. The Pioneers (12-0) roughed up Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 56-6 Friday.
The YME defense fared well against the run all season, but the Nuggets' ground attack had their way, averaging 6.8 yards a carry.
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"It's a quick-base offense with the running backs almost at the line," said Mattson describing his team's style. "We follow the blockers and explode through the hole. We don't need much room."
On the third play of the game, YME senior quarterback Luke Berg fired the first of his four interceptions to set up the Nuggets' first score. Hawley needed only 1:47 to go up 6-0 after quarterback Brady Harms scored on a keeper on the left side from three yards out.
Another Berg pick allowed Hawley to score on its second straight possession. Mattson capped a quick 1:28 drive with a 35-yard run, breaking through three tacklers off the left side.
"They ran a veer offense, but it's the personal not the offense that's important," said Brokke. "They have a lot of speed and an offensive line that came off the ball real quick. It's hard to judge that on film, but they were the real thing here tonight."
Mattson scored on an eight-yard run midway through the second quarter and fellow running back Nick Paur ran in from 11 yards out seven minutes later to give Hawley a comfortable 25-0 lead at halftime. Mattson gained 120 yards on 17 carries in the first two quarters while Paur piled up 85 more yards on 14 touches.
YME, appearing in its second straight state tournament, got to the Hawley 41-yard line on two occasions in the opening half, but a tough Nuggets' defensive line didn't break.
"They just rushed four guys, but they put pressure on (Berg) consistency," said Brokke. "And we got a pretty good offensive line."
Mattson burst up the middle on the second play from scrimmage to open the third quarter to pick up a 79-yard touchdown run and capped the scoring 5:37 later on a seven-yard scamper.
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Senior Jerrod Lobdell (58) and junior Kyle Gaffaney (51) combined to rush for 109 yards on 21 carries for the Sting. Senior linebacker Jordan Gaffaney was in on 12 tackles and junior Dylan Hempel 11 to pace the defense.
Hawley 38, YME 0
Hawley (12-0) 12 13 13 0 - 38
YME (9-3) 0 0 0 0 - 0
Hawley - Brady Harms 3 run (kick failed)
Hawley - Cory Mattson 35 run (pass failed)
Hawley - Mattson 8 run (run failed)
Hawley - Nick Paur 11 run (Andrew VanHavermaet kick)
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Hawley - Mattson 79 run (VanHavermaet kick)
Hawley - Mattson 8 run (kick failed)
Hawley
Team statistics
First downs: 19 ... Rushing: 65-439 ... Passing (com-att-yds-int.): 2-4-20-0 ... Fumbles lost: 0 ... Penalties: 2-10
Individual statistics
Rushing: Cory Mattson 23-245, Nick Paur 22-116, Jake Grefsrud 8-52 .... Passing: Brady Harms 2-4-20-0 .... Receiving: Grant Aakre 2-20 .... Punting: VanHavermaet 1-38 .... Interceptions: Ryan Boyer 2, Justin Vik 1, Paur 1 .... Fumble recoveries: none .... Tackles (solo-assist): not available ... QB sacks: Jared Peters 1½, Matt Burnside 1, Seth Peters ½
Yellow Medicine East
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Team statistics
First downs: 12 ... Rushing: 30-138 ... Passing (com-att-yds-int.): 6-25-67-4 ... Fumbles lost: 0 ... Penalties: 2-10
Individual statistics
Rushing: Jerrod Lobdell 15-59, Kyle Gaffaney 6-51, Ryan Fromm 3-12 .... Passing: Luke Berg 4-18-38-4, Shawn Neu 2-7-21-0 .... Receiving: Clay Sharkey 1-12, Fromm 2-3, Dan Johnson 2-29, Tom Jacobson 1-23 .... Punting: Fromm 3-34 .... Interceptions: none .... Fumble recoveries: none .... Tackles (solo-assist): Jordan Gaffaney 9-3, Jordan Stock 5-3, Jarrett Berg 4-2, Fromm 4-0, Berg 6-1, K. Gaffaney 5-4, Dylan Hempel 7-4, Kenton Johnson 6-4, Tim Palm 3-1, Nick Rolfing 2-3, Justin Thomas 5-3, Spencer Sannerud 2-1, Casey Luepke 2-1 ... QB sacks: Berg 1, K. Johnson 1
