Maple Grove made another memorable visit to Buffalo last Saturday when it came away with a 7-0 section semifinal victory.
The Crimson defeated the Bison last fall for the section championship. Last week's win sends Maple Grove into the final, where it visits No. 1-seeded Wayzata Friday, Nov. 1.
Defense dominated and the Crimson defense especially was suffocating as it completely bottled up Buffalo's offense. Led by linebackers Luke Greder, Brandon Barth, ends Paul Joelson and Mitch Berscheit and tackles Jordan Muro and Mike Palmer, the Crimson plugged the running lanes and put constant pressure on the Bison backfield.
"The defense was just outstanding," Maple Grove coach Craig Hansen said. "Buffalo has a very explosive offense with a great quarterback but our kids just kept hitting hard all night. You could hear it all over the stadium."
The Bison defense was almost just as stingy but the Crimson had better field position thanks to its strong defense and special team play. In their second possession, the Crimson drove to the Buffalo 22 but a field goal went wide. That was the only scoring chance for either team.
"Buffalo did something new on defense," Hansen said. "At halftime, we made some adjustment and made sure that everyone was on the same page. We were able to control the ball, kill the clock and keep their offense off the field.”
The Cr3imson score the winning touchdown in the third quarter on a 60-yard drive. Quarterback Mitch Brecke hit wide receiver Greg Martin for a 23-yard gain and running back Ryan Iskierka had some tough runs for first downs to bring the ball close. Fullback Eric Whinnery, who filled in for the injured Ryan Gust, got the call and scored on a 13-yard touchdown run. Matt Shuba kicked the PAT for all for the scoring.
Buffalo had its only threat late in the game when it completed two big passes to record its deepest penetration of tonight. But Shuba ended Buffalo’s hop when he intercepted a pass at the Maple Grove 37 and the Crimson rant out the clock.
The Crimson offense was not spectacular, but very effective. For the first time this season they did not have any turnovers or penalties. Brecke had another solid game, completing nine of 21 passes for 18 yards. Martin caught five passes for 97 yards, Iskierka had 67 yards on 16 rushes and Whinnery added 53 yards on 17 rushes.
Buffalo had only 36 yards rushing and 133 yards passing.
The Crimson will call on the defense to come up big again in the section final against Wayzata. They did that last year when the Crimson beat the Trojans 3-0. Chase Mudd who suffered a concussion against Osseo, and Gust had tuf toe, are doubtful to participate in the game.
“Wayzata is a power house with a tough defense,” Hansen said. “I think we match up well with them. It should be a whale of a game.”