Britton-Hecla wrapped up its regular season with a 50-0 win over Sisseton on Friday that ended with 2:35 remaining in the third period on the 50-point rule to springboard itself into the Class 9AA playoffs with a home game against Bridgewater-Emery/Ethan at 6 p.m. Thursday.
The Braves are the fourth seed with a 7-1 record while Bridgewater-Emery/Ethan is a 13 seed with a 2-6 mark. But B-H boss Jacob Skogstad noted that the Seahawks’ record is a bit misleading.
“Bridgewater is no typical 13 seed,” warned Skogstad. “They are very well-coached and played a difficult schedule this season. They have some playmakers who will run the ball hard. The keys for us will be ball security, tackling, and execution.”
All eight of the Seahawks’ regular season opponents qualified for the playoffs and have combined for a 53-27 record. That list of foes includes #1 and unbeaten Parkston in Class 9AA (56-12 loss) and #2 and unbeaten Freeman in Class 9A (51-0 loss).
Skogstad said his squad is healthy for the postseason opener. Two players are also on the cusp of 1,000-yard seasons. Senior runningback Ben Suther has run for 994 yards and 16 touchdowns and senior quarterback Jace Rein has completed 66% of his passes for 884 yards and 14 scores while adding another 490 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns.
The winner of Thursday’s contest will meet the victor between #5 Waubay-Summit (7-1) and #12 Sioux Falls Lutheran (3-5) next week Thursday, Oct. 29. If the Braves win this week they would also host the second round game.
The Braves are aiming to end a six-game postseason losing streak. After a state runner-up finish in 2019 Britton-Hecla has fallen in the first round of the playoffs the last six seasons, losing by just a touchdown a year ago and by four points in 2024.
Skogstad was pleased with the way his club ended regular season play.
“I thought we played a really well-rounded game on Friday night. Sisseton did a good job making some plays and keeping it close in the first half. I was proud of the way our guys stuck with the game plan and knew it would break open soon.”
The Braves defense made its presence felt early when Jace Rein, Graham Fosness, and Chaz Vietor all had tackles for losses to stop the Redmen’s opening drive. Then Suther, who ran for 159 yards on just seven carries (22.7 ave.), scored the first of his three touchdowns from 30 yards out and Easton Zuehlke ran the conversion for an 8-0 lead.
Sisseton came back with a 12-play drive that ate up most of the rest of the opening period but was forced to punt. B-H took over on its own five and on a third and one to open the second stanza Suther rumbled for an 86-yard score and Lofton Heer booted the first of his six straight extra points for a 15-0 lead.
Jack Teveldal came up with the first of his two pass interceptions on first down of Sisseton’s next possession but it was the only possession for the Braves that did not end with a touchdown in the contest.
B-H got the ball back on its own 20 and Suther opened the drive with a 32-yard gain. Ten plays and a couple of third down conversions later Suther scored for the third time on a three-yard dive with 3:35 left in the quarter and the Braves led 22-0 at halftime.
Then came the third quarter explosion that Skogstad had been waiting for. The local gridders opened the second half with a seven-play, 53-yard drive capped by a Rein 21-yard scamper at the 8:34 mark. B-H recovered a Sisseton fumble and scored on first down when Chaz Vietor grabbed a 32-yard scoring toss from Rein for touchdowns just 80 seconds apart.
Another fumble on the kickoff put the Braves back in business on the Sisseton 19 and Rein did the honors with a 14-yard TD run for a 43-0 advantage with 4:24 left in the third stanza. Teveldal put on the finishing touches when he came up with a pick six less than two minutes later to end the game.
Britton-Hecla held a 327-100 total yardage advantage with 274 yards rushing and 53 more through the air. Sisseton was a minus two yards rushing for the game and had 100 passing.
Fosness led the defensive effort with 5.5 stops and Suther had five tackles. Vietor came up with a pair of quarterback sacks and Teveldal two pass interceptions.
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