MLS football vs. Manton (playoffs, game 1)

On Friday night, Michigan Lutheran Seminary hosted Manton High School for the first round of playoffs.  MLS was 8-1 going into the game, and Manton was 7-2.  It was the first time since 1994 that Manton had made the playoffs, and though MLS has seen the playoffs over the years, they had not advanced beyond the first round since 1994.  So for either team, the night's game would represent a great milestone, two decades in the making.

We drove up through heavy snow from Flint until Bridgeport, but the snow/rain had stopped by the time we got to Saginaw.  It was still very windy (40 mph), and the forecast was for heavy winds all night long.

Manton proved to be a solid, disciplined football team.  They were also taught to tackle very well.  MLS jumped to an early lead, 7-0.  But Manton answered before halftime and got a two-point conversion.  Halftime score was 8-7, Manton.

Neither team scored in the 3rd quarter, but MLS did not look like it had any way to move the ball.  The drives all stalled, and with both teams relying heavily on the running game, the clock just kept ticking.

Manton scored what looked like the dagger with 7:52 left in the game.  MLS held them out of  the end zone on the two-point conversion attempt which was HUGE, keeping the game only one score away, 14-7.  Finally, MLS started to run between the tackles (as I wondered, WHERE WAS THAT IN THE PREVIOUS 3 QUARTERS?????)  MLS needed all four downs to convert a few times, but convert they did.  Some of them actually busted out into TD's.  MLS ended up putting up 20 points in the 4th quarter, resulting in a 27-14 win.  That final score belies how tight and how stressful the game was.

The next game will be Friday, November 7 at Whittemore-Prescott.  Laura will be recovering from surgery that same day.

You can read about M-Live's accounts of the game here and here.

Some photos here:

 Andrew had one catch all night.  This was it.

 Andrew (middle) leans in to make a tackle.

Victory and euphoria!!!