Mounds View defense sets the pace, offense puts the game away

The Mounds View defense put on a show Friday night in the 6A playoffs. They held one of the highest-profile players in the state to 13 points. The Mustangs' offense used a balanced attack and put up 20 points in the second quarter to give their defense more than enough room to advance to the state quarterfinals with a 48-13 victory. Buffalo moved deep into Mustangs' territory on the first drive of the game. Aiden Bouman's first pass of the game went for 40 yards, but Mounds View's Mateo Cisneros caught an overthrown ball for an interception a few plays later. After the Mustangs' offense punted, the defense stood tall again, setting the offense up near mid-field. A tough inside run by Brian Tebbutt, followed by Jack Roeber picking up big yards on an end-around, gave Mounds View its first scoring threat. The Mustangs continued to run inside behind center Bill Ketola until quarterback Cole Stenstrom's quarterback draw put Mounds View on the board. With Buffalo driving, a Bouman pass was overthrown, again, and again, Cisneros was right there for the interception. The senior sprinted down the sidelines and was knocked out of bounds near mid-field. "We knew they wanted to get the ball out," Mustangs' defensive lineman AJ Hunt said. "We wanted to stop the pass first. We have an unbelievable secondary for that. When they did run, we trusted ourselves that we would stop the run." The Bison defense would get the ball back to its offense, and Bouman – using his legs and his arm – led the Bison to a touchdown. His slant pass to Michael Tweten resulted in a nine-yard touchdown pass. Tied at seven, Mounds View used the arm of Stenstrom and the feet of Tebbutt to get the lead back. Facing a third and ten, Stenstrom and Roeber hooked up for a 21-yard touchdown. The Mustangs' offense was moving again late in the half but were faced with a fourth and five. Stenstrom's pass to Tate Lahr was short of the first down, but Lahr broke a tackle and powered his way beyond the line to gain to keep the drive alive. With just over two minutes to play in the half, Tebbett scored from five yards away. After a strong pass rush by Mounds View's Jaylan Lomax forced a rushed throw on fourth down, it looked like the first half would end with the Mustangs leading 21-7. However, Mounds View was able to move the ball to the Buffalo 36-yard line with five seconds to play. Stenstrom threw a Hail Mary pass that Roeber caught short of the goal line. Roeber was able to force his way through tacklers and a touchdown with no time on the clock. Leading 27-7 at the half, the Mustangs' defense took over from there. They would allow just one more touchdown, and although Buffalo moved the ball, the defense would come up big on fourth down. Stenstrom's passing set the stage for Tebbett's second touchdown of the game. After Stenstrom ran in his second touchdown run, he would put a cherry on top of the victory by completing a 72-yard touchdown pass to Roeber. "It was a great team win," Stenstrom said. "Our defense gave us chances and created turnovers and set the offense up." Stenstrom accounted for five of Mounds View's touchdowns – two on the ground and three through the air. Roeber caught four passes for 140 yards and three touchdowns while Tebbett rushed for 124 yards and scored two touchdowns. "It was a nice combination of pass and run," Stenstrom said. "Brian Tebbett is one of the best running backs in the state, and we have a lot of guys on the outside who play well. We have a lot of weapons." The defense forced three turnovers and only allowed one score each half. The Mustangs (8-2) will next play Lakeville South in the 6A quarterfinals.