Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

After 10 weeks there are 56 high school teams across the state of Iowa still playing.

All seven classes are down to the final eight teams with quarterfinals set for next Friday to determine who advances to the state semifinals in the UNI-Dome.

Three Your Prep Sports area teams secured spots in the quarterfinals with postseason wins on Friday.

What stood out from the first full Friday of playoff action statewide?

We take a look in a playoff edition of the Your Prep Sports Rapid Reaction.

What Stood Out?

Liberty High Makes History

Liberty High earned home field advantage in the playoffs but the Lightning didn’t get an easy draw with Webster City and its unique single wing offense.

As it turned out nothing was going to stand in the way for the Lightning earning the first playoff victory in program history on Friday.

Graham Beckman tossed a pair of touchdown passes as Liberty High held off Webster City 24-14 on Friday to advance to the 4A quarterfinals for the first time.

The fifth season of varsity football at Liberty High has been a special one.

Liberty High had 15 combined wins in its first four seasons.

The Lightning can get to 10 with a win over fifth-ranked Carlisle (9-1) in another home playoff game next Friday.

West Branch Takes Care of Business

The 27-14 win for West Branch over Waterloo Columbus was the ultimate taking care of business win needed for a playoff run.

West Branch secured a second win in eight weeks over the Sailors after downing Waterloo Columbus 34-13 in week two in the third meeting in the past two years between the two teams.

Andy Henson did Andy Henson things. Rushing for 131 yards and two touchdowns and making nine tackles.

Tye Hughes was as steady as he has been all season passing for 131 yards and a touchdown and rushing for 55 more yards.

The West Branch defense was stingy.

It wasn’t a lopsided win but West Branch was controlled the game the way good teams control postseason games with defense and by controlling the ball.

West Branch ran 16 more offensive plays than Waterloo Columbus and had a 112 yard edge in total offense.

Overtime Unkind to City High

City High had the type of first half that can end a season in the playoffs.

The Little Hawks turned the ball over on downs in plus territory, had a punt blocked, lost a fumble, dropped a pass on a well-executed fake punt attempt, threw an interception and committed seven penalties all before halftime.

Even with all the miscues the Little Hawks had a chance against seventh-ranked Johnston.

City High rallied from a 24-7 first-half deficit to force overtime before falling to the Dragons 38-31 in a 5A opening-round thriller.

Solon Gets Its Rematch  

The schedule suggested Friday’s opener against West Delaware could be a trap for seventh-ranked Solon.

The Hawks were battle tested and dangerous and Solon had the possibility of a rematch with rival Mount Vernon lingering a week away.

Head coach Lucas Stanton even acknowledged the trap game scenario was on his mind.

Solon didn’t fall into the trap on Friday.

The Spartans led 28-0 early in the third quarter and was never seriously threatened in a 42-18 win over the Hawks at Spartan Field.

Solon intercepted four passes and rushed for more than 200 yards for the sixth time during its current seven-game winning streak while improving to 8-2 on the season.

Now Solon can safely look ahead to a rematch with Mount Vernon which snapped a 19-game losing streak to the Spartans with a 17-14 win at Spartan Stadium in week two.

Who Stepped up?

Drew Larson

In his first start since week six of the regular season the City High junior quarterback passed for 237 yards and a touchdown and rushed for a season-high 139 yards in the loss to Johnston.

What’s Next

Three Games to Watch Next Week

Carlisle (9-1) at Liberty High (9-1) – One of the best 4A quarterfinals on the slate for next week this game has all the makings of a classic slugfest.

MFL Mar-Mac (9-1) at West Branch (10-0) – A couple of physical football teams that love to run the ball squared off at the Little Rose Bowl for a spot in the state semifinals.

Solon (8-2) at Mount Vernon (10-0) – What more needs to be said about this one? The two long-time Highway 1 rivals meet in a rematch of a regular season thriller won 17-14 by Mount Vernon.

Did you enjoy this subscription free article? Help keep Your Prep Sports free by donating.