Medicine Valley defenders, left to right, Landon Lenz, Justin Pendleton, Quade Potter and Dylan Davis tackle a Perkins County Plainsman during the first half of Tuesday’s Class D1 quarterfinal game in Curtis. The Raiders improved to 11-0 with a 48-26 win and advance to play South Loup in a semifinal game to be played next Monday at 6 p.m. in Callaway.
Steve Towery/McCook Gazette
CURTIS, Neb. -- Deer season and winter sports will have to wait.
Medicine Valley head coach Scott Johnsen told his team as much following the Raiders’ 48-26 Class D1 quarterfinal win over Perkins County Tuesday night in Curtis.
With the win, Medicine Valley (11-0 record) advances to its second semifinal in school history and first since 1999. The Raiders will play the South Loup Bobcats on Monday for a trip to the D1 state championship in Lincoln.
“This is big for the community and the kids,” Johnsen said. “They worked their tails off all year to get here for us. Maybe some things have happened for us, maybe we got some good draws, I don’t know, but they busted their butts every day.”
Landon Lenz launches a deep pass during the first quarter of Tuesday’s Class D1 quarterfinal game between Medicine Valley and Perkins County.
Steve Towery/McCook Gazette
Landon Lenz ran for four touchdowns, including three in the fourth quarter, and Sam Heapy had a hand in three others to lead the Medicine Valley attack.
Lenz, who was born the same year the Raiders last made the state semifinals, called the final-four appearance “once in a lifetime.”
“Honestly, it feels pretty dang good. Our offensive line came together and they did really good in the second half.”
Medicine Valley found itself in a first-half slugfest and led just 18-14 at intermission.
Perkins County took an early 6-0 lead on Alex Patrick’s 11-yard run at the 10:49 mark of the first quarter.
Sam Heapy lunges across the goal line for a seven-yard touchdown during the first quarter of Tuesday's game.
Steve Towery/McCook Gazette
The Raiders responded with two Heapy touchdowns to make it 12-6. The sophomore quarterback ran in a seven-yard score before finding Chase Newcomb for a 22-yard touchdown pass.
Lenz extended Medicine Valley’s lead to 18-6, when he found paydirt from three yards out with 2:53 remaining in the half.
Charles Johnson’s five-yard pass to Patrick with 40 seconds remaining cut the Raiders’ lead to 18-14 at the break.
“We told the kids at halftime to keep battling,” Johnsen said. “Perkins County is a helluva ball club. They run a lot of good stuff.”
The teams came out of the locker room trading scores in the third quarter. Heapy’s 31-yard strike to Quade Potter made it 26-14 before Johnson scored his second touchdown of the night to pull Perkins County back to within 26-20.
Like their two other playoff games, the Raiders closed out the game with a dominant fourth quarter.
Lenz opened the final stanza with a 39-yard touchdown to make it 34-20.
Patrick’s 1-yard run at the 5:43 mark brought Perkins County back to within 34-26, but that would be the final time the Plainsmen came within one touchdown of the Raiders.
Medicine Valley’s final two drives ended in touchdown runs from Lenz. The senior capped the night by picking off a Johnson pass in the endzone as time expired.
Perkins County finished the game with 406 yards of offense and 26 first downs, but five Plainsmen drives ended on downs and two more end with interceptions. Johnsen credited his defense with rising to the occasion.
“It’s the kids. They understand what’s at stake. They bend but don’t break. The kids dug down tonight. They were hungry and they wanted it.”
Medicine Valley has outscored its three playoff opponents 78-18 in the second half, including 63-6 in the fourth quarter. According to Raider senior Sheldon Johnsen, the team’s conditioning has played a big factor in the team’s ability to pull away from teams.
“We condition a lot in practice. That’s where our conditioning comes into play. We don’t go down before our opponent does. We keep going, keep going and keep fighting. They get tired and we don’t.”
When asked about the win, the senior linebacker didn’t hesitate.
“It’s just amazing. A great feeling. I’m so proud of my teammates.”
Medicine Valley generated 355 yards of offense. Lenz led the way with 232 of the Raiders’ 258 rushing yards, while Heapy was a perfect 3-for-3 passing for 62 yards and two scores.
Up next for the Raiders will be a roadtrip to take on South Loup for a chance to play in the Class D1 state championship at Memorial Stadium. South Loup is a co-op of high schools in Arnold and Callaway.
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. in Callaway.
The Bobcats are 11-0 and coming off a 54-14 win over CWCE (Chambers/Wheeler Central/Ewing) Tuesday. Quarterback Jack Rush leads the state in scoring with 61 touchdowns (22 passing, 39 rushing) and has generated 2,934 yards of offense.
“South Loup’s a good ball club,” Coach Johnsen said. “Jack Rush can run the ball, throw the ball, they’ve got good receivers and good running backs. We’re just gonna have to have a good week of preparation like we did, work out our game plan and get it ready to go.”
Class D1’s other semifinal game will have Howells-Dodge (11-0) play East Butler (9-2). The Jaguars and Tigers previously played in Week 1, when Howells-Dodge won 26-20.
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