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Tigers topple United, return to state

Springfield defeats SEU 49-27 in 3A Championship

By Ari Selvey 6 min read

MARSHALL - After surrendering 14 consecutive points to second-seeded Sleepy Eye United to start off the Section 3A Football Championship game, it was looking like top-seeded Springfield had its work cut out for it.

But the Tigers scored three touchdowns unanswered to end the first half up 21-14.

“A lot of resolve,” Springfield head coach Adam Meyer said. “Great job from our leadership - you go down 14-0 early in games like this, at times it’s easy to go away. But our guys just kept going with that next-play mindset. A lot of seniors stepped up in big moments - Parker [Kuehn] played an outstanding game, our offensive line game him some time, and the receivers made plays down the field.”

The Tigers continued to score to score in the second half to take a 49-27 victory and return to the Class A State Tournament.

“It feels great,” Springfield’s Braxton Brown. said. “Since last year we didn’t get to go to the state tournament, it’s a big accomplishment. The team is really proud.”

After falling in last year’s section championship game, the Tigers get another chance in the state tournament after making it in the previous three seasons.

“It really was just a team effort,” Springfield’s Tyson Horkey said. “Last year we lost, and we stuck with it the entire offseason. Used that motivation to come back here and win it. I love this team.”

The Tigers will play a state tournament game next Friday at a location to be determined.

“It means a lot, especially since we got so close last year and weren’t able to get over the hump,” Kuehn said. “This year I think we really have something special, and the guys are really looking forward to this state run and I hope we can go get it done.”

Brown played hero for Springfield in the game, sparking the Tigers offense by catching their first two touchdowns, then closing out the game with a interception return for a touchdown.

“It feels great,” Brown said. “I don’t like to take a lot of credit, because the linemen up front have to block and everyone has to do their job. Just thanks to them, and we just had a great game.”

Brown finished the game with three receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns, along with his interception return for a touchdown. Also for Springfield, Kuehn was 13 for 16 passing with 301 yards and three touchdowns and added two more touchdowns on the ground. Ely Streich had four receptions for 77 yards and a TD, and Madden Lendt had four receptions for 54 yards and added an interception and two passes deflected defensively. Carter Jackson had 14 carries for 104 yards and a touchdown. Aiden Moriarty had 14 tackles to lead the defense, while Leo Hovland had 13 tackles and a blocked extra point.

For SEU, Neeyan Netzke had 29 rushes for 159 yards and a touchdown, while Merrick Mathiowetz had 13 rushes for 45 yards and a touchdown and three receptions for 84 yards. Landry Folkens was 6 for 14 passing for 123 yards and two touchdowns, while Gavin Fischer had one catch for 14 yards and a TD.

After forcing a three-and-out defensively, SEU got a connection from Folkens to Mathiowetz for 32 yards before Mathiowetz broke away for a 27-yard touchdown run to take a 7-0 lead. The United defense then forced a fumble to set up an 18-yard touchdown from Fokens to Uecker to go up 14-0.

“[We just needed] to stay disciplined,” Kuehn said. “I think we did a good job of going back to what we’re good at - playing fast and keeping the pace up so they get tired and we can take advantage of it.”

Springfield got back on track with a 62-yard touchdown pass from Kuehn to Brown, then after an SEU punt, Brown found the end zone again from 51 yards out to tie the game at 14. The Tigers took the lead on another touchdown pass, this time to Ely Streich, to go up 21-14 just before halftime.

“Again, just having that next-play mindset and having guys that want to step up in big moments,” Meyer said. “We needed some stops defensively and offensively we needed to run the ball more effectively and open up our passing game. Our guys did a great job to keep battling and doing their thing.”

The Springfield defense forced another SEU punt to start the second half, and the offense stayed hot as Jackson ran it in from 29 yards away to increase the lead to 27-14.

But SEU wasn’t ready to give in, and a good return set them up at Springfield’s 48-yard line. From there, a 10-yard pass to Mathiowetz helped set up Netzke for a 1-yard touchdown run to cut the lead to 27-21.

Springfield would not be denied on offense, however, as a pair of connections to Moriarty - one for 16 yards and another for 25 yards - got the Tigers into the red zone, where Kuehn finished it off with a 3-yard touchdown run to go up 35-21. SEU responded, using a 40-yard reception by Mathiowetz to set up a 14-yard touchdown pass from Folkens to Fischer, but the extra point was blocked to keep the score at 35-27.

This time it was Springfield’s turn to have good field position as a return by Brown set the Tigers up at the SEU 30. From there, a 21-yard pass to Lendt got most of the way to the end zone, with Kuehn scoring from 1 yard out.

With 3:05 left on the clock, SEU needed to cut into the 42-27 deficit quickly. But Brown closed out any hope of a comeback, intercepting a pass and returning it 45 yards for the score.

“We just had to be more physical,” Brown said. “It was a game of physicality, and I just thought we took it home at the end. We just wanted it a little more.”

One last heave late was intercepted by Lendt to close out the game.

“We came out hard-nosed and we knew the job wasn’t finished in the second half,” Horkey said. “We were up by one touchdown, and we had one goal in mind. We stuck with it the entire half.”

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