High school playoff football in Minnesota comes with a simple truth: it isn’t always pretty, but it’s always about survival.
On a frigid, mud-slicked Tuesday night, Section 2AA opened with a classic crosstown rivalry as the fourth-seeded St. Clair/Loyola Spartans hosted the hungry, fifth-seeded Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton Bulldogs. Both teams entered the postseason on two-game skids, seeking a clean slate.
SCL found their survival—and their redemption—in a wild, stomach-churning 20-12 victory that featured five Spartan turnovers, bone-crunching defensive stands, and a clutch fourth-quarter surge.
“It wasn’t the prettiest win for us by most measures, but it’s a survive and advance mentality in the playoffs,” head coach Stephen Willaert said in the postgame. “In the end, we did enough to win and we’ll live with that result.”
Dominant Start, Early Chaos
The Spartans set the tone early on defense. After an opening squib kick gave JWP prime field position at midfield, the Spartan front line established its overbearing presence. Willard Spence and Paul Schmit blew up an early run, Ashton Wilmes closed out a screen for a loss of seven, and Schmit punctuated the drive by leveling JWP quarterback Seth Dahlberg for a sack on 4th and 18.
SCL’s offense immediately capitalized on the defensive statement. Behind strong interior runs and a right-side sweep from Wilmes, the Spartans marched down to the 1-yard line before Blake McClinton found a seam up the gut for the opening touchdown, giving SCL a 6-0 edge.
Despite a brief moment of drama when Spence left the field in frustration, the Spartans doubled down on their momentum in the second quarter. Senior quarterback Sam Freitag orchestrated a heavy three-back set, connecting with Wilmes on a 20-yard crossing route on 4th and 6 to extend the lead to 12-0.
Determined to bite back, the Bulldogs struck back midway through the second quarter when Dahlberg hit his favorite target, Gavin Bauer, in the back of the endzone to narrow the deficit to 12-6. The Spartans looked poised to answer right before halftime, driving inside the red zone, but a fumbled screen pass near the goal line was recovered by JWP, foreshadowing the chaotic second half to come.
The Turnover Tempest
What followed in the third quarter was a nightmare stretch for the Spartans’ offense and special teams. SCL turned the ball over on four consecutive possessions:
- A fumble by McClinton after picking up a first down.
- An intercepted desperation heave from Freitag under heavy pressure.
- A fumble by Carson Preston following a sideline catch.
- A muffed punt by Eli Sieberg on a field rendered treacherous by cold rain and thick mud.
The Bulldogs capitalized on the short field following Freitag’s interception, with Dahlberg dropping a dime to Bauer at the 1-yard line before throwing an equalizer in the end zone to tie the game 12-12.
Yet, despite being repeatedly backed into a corner, the SCL defense refused to break entirely. Senior lineman Steven Loeffler terrorized the JWP backfield, recording crucial third-down sacks to stall Bulldog drives and keep the game deadlocked.
“We were very happy with our defensive performance as they came through when necessary,” Coach Willaert noted. “You have to give them a little slack when having to bounce back from those turnovers.”
Senior Leadership Seals the Victory
With their season on the line entering the fourth quarter, the Spartans’ defense provided the game’s ultimate turning point. Following Sieberg’s muffed punt, JWP appeared ready to take control of the lead; however, within a split second, Cooper Garlow snagged a screen pass to give SCL possession and ignite a furious battle cry from the sideline and Spartan faithful in the stands.
Taking advantage of the shift, Freitag led a methodical, bruising drive down to the JWP 12-yard line, aided by a hard power run from Wilmes and an unnecessary roughness penalty on a hit against Sieberg. On 3rd and Goal, Freitag took matters into his own hands, barreling through Bulldogs and into into the end zone. A successful Freitag two-point conversion draw put the Spartans back on top, 20-12.
JWP made one final desperate push, but Loeffler’s third sack of the night forced a turnover on downs with five minutes remaining. After a late SCL turnover on downs, the tension remained as the Bulldogs had 90 seconds to mount a miraculous drive. However, that hope was almost immediately extinguished as a crossing pass was bobbled by a Bulldog receiver then picked off by Brock Prange. Freitag punctuated the victory with one last bruising run to bleed the remaining seconds, sending SCL to the Section 2AA semifinals.
Looking Ahead to the Buccaneers
With the Bulldogs eliminated, the Spartans now turn their attention to a daunting semifinal matchup against the top-seeded WEM Buccaneers—the very team that dealt SCL a humbling 36-0 shutout just two weeks prior.
Coach Willaert knows the task ahead will require a sharper performance, but his squad isn’t backing down. “We know what we have to do — show up to win with nothing else on our minds,” he explained. “They’re a tough team, and you need to keep yourself in the game by executing your gameplan. We’re going to throw everything we have at them!”
Stat Leaders:
Passing-Sam Frietag with 88 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing-Ashton Wilmes with 57 yards on 13 carries; Freitag with 44 yards (1TD) on 13 carries ; Blake McClinton with 21 yards (1TD) on seven carries
Receiving-Wilmes with four receptions (1TD) for 41 yards; Eli Sieberg with four receptions for 24 yards
Defense-Steven Loeffler with four TFL & three sacks; Brock Prange & Cooper Garlow with an INT each
