Pierz!!

Good grief! This is crazy!

The Pierz Pioneers have a 34-0 halftime lead over St. Cloud Cathedral in the Section 5AAA championship game in St. Cloud. You can listen to the game at http://www.youaretheresports.com. This link also works: http://www.sfmsports.net/#!sfmsports-channel-three/can2. The second half just started five minutes before 10.

Pierz senior running back Robby Skiba has 233 rushing yards as the third quarter is underway. At halftime, as a team the Pioneers had 300 rushing yards. They haven't given up a single point since October 10 when they beat Rockford Area 27-12.

Holy moly! Way to represent the Central Minnesota Conference! That is an incredible whooping. Pierz has just eight seniors on the roster, while the Crusaders have 17 seniors.

Craig Luberts has the all-time rushing record at Pierz with 298 rushing yards earned in the Class 2A state tournament in 2003 when the Pioneers played Esko in Duluth in a 48-32 shoot out win. Pierz lost in the state semifinals to Breck that year. In 2004, they went all the way to the Prep Bowl and beat Eden Valley-Watkins 39-14 for a state title after starting the season 0-2. Luberts ran for 2,103 yards in the 2003 season to forge the single-season rushing record at Pierz.

Looking back at the 2014 season, the B-B-E Jaguars football team faced no less than five section-finals bound teams. And everyone in Jaguar Country, repeat after me: "Uuf Da!"

**Update: Skiba, now with 271 rushing yards in the game, scored with 7:15 left in the third quarter from 23 yards out on a run play. The PAT kick was good to make it 41-0. They started the third quarter with a 60-yard touchdown drive.

Looking to bust up the shut out, Cathedral has first-and-goal at the Pierz five-yard line with 4:10 to play in the third quarter.

On first down, Johnny Kasper knocked down the ball for an incomplete pass. On second down, Pierz blitzed to force an early throw and an incomplete pass. On third down on a pass play, Casper tipped the ball away with another stellar defensive move to force another incomplete pass. On fourth down, Cathedral blew a timeout. Out of the timeout, on shot gun, another incomplete pass was thrown by Cathedral's quarterback!  Turnover on downs! With about three minutes left in the third quarter, Pierz started over on their own five-yard line.

Skiba had 273 yards...on third and six, the Pioneers Skiba cuts and runs to the 20, 30, 40, 50, and tripped up at the Crusaders 41-yard line! He has the new record! 325 rushing yards. He was pulled from the game and now has 1,901 rushing yards this season.

To get to 298 yards in the Esko win in 2003, Luberts ran the ball 32 times for 298 yards. Skiba ran the ball 23 times tonight to get to 325 yards.

Back to tonight's game, Noah Boser then cut down field on a 30-yard run and was taken down at the five-yard line.

On first and goal from the Crusaders five-yard line with a full house back field, Brett Capsner ran for four yards to the one-yard line. With time ticking down in the third quarter, Capsner scored one a one-yard run for a 47-0 lead and 11 seconds left on the clock. The PAT kick was good for a 48-0 lead.

Early in the fourth quarter, Cathedral's quarterback was 8-for-35 in passing with four interceptions. Wow! That is a rough night at the office! Cathedral, trying to earn a shred of dignity and find the end zone, has kept their first-stringers in the game against Pierz JV team and second-string players.

On an incredible goal-line stand, the Pierz JV defense faced the Cathedral first-team players who had first down and goal-to-go at the five-yard line. Here's what happened:
2nd and goal from one yard out. 6:37 left, running time...three yard run.
3rd and goal on the two yard line - pass play, almost intercepted, deflected at the line by a Pierz JV player.
4th and goal from the two yard line - 5:05 to go - fade pattern to the end zone, incomplete pass!!!! wow! Hunter Bednar made a play on it to protect the shut out. The final score was 48-0 after the Crusaders JV team had no luck moving the ball on the game's final series. Pierz now has three straight shut outs to their credit as they head to the state tournament.

Pierz (10-0) will play Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton in the Class 3A state quarterfinals next Saturday in Brainerd at 6 p.m.

The Crusaders got 82 rushing yards and just 102 passing yards. Their quarterbacks were a combined 10-for-39 in passing with four interceptions (all in the first half).

Here's other section championship football scores from today:
Maple Lake 42, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 0
New London-Spicer 30, Melrose Area 15
Blooming Prairie 36, Rushford-Peterson 21

In other news...
While hanging out at the high school tonight during open gym to give our eighth grader time to shake loose some rust as the junior high boys' basketball Front Court season starts this week...I ventured over to the auditorium to take in a little of the musical rehearsal. The musical dates of "Clue" are November 21, November 22, November 23. The Friday and Saturday times are 7:30 p.m., while Sunday's performance is at 2 p.m. Be sure to spread the word and write the dates down on your family's calendar!

That's all folks. Signing out now for the weekend.