By Ryan Deal 

605 Sports

Here is a game-by-game look at Thursday’s Class 9A first-round matchups:

North Central (3-6) at Wall (8-0)

Time/location: 5:30 p.m. at Wall

Outlook: No. 3 Wall polished off an undefeated regular season with a 42-8 win over New Underwood last Friday. The Eagles are averaging 44.5 points per game and their defense allows 7.7 points per game, including two shutouts. Wall’s balanced offensive attack is powered by quarterback Burk Blasius, who has thrown for 1,019 yards and 12 touchdowns. He’s added 384 rushing yards and eight scores. Cedar Amiotte has racked up 858 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns out of the backfield, while adding 324 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Mason Heath has rushed for 344 yards and nine touchdowns. Receivers Rylan McDonnell both have 260 receiving yards, while McDonnell has four touchdown receptions. No. 14 North Central started the season 3-2, but dropped its final four games to close the season. Landon Wolf rushed for 38 yards in last week’s 54-0 loss to Ipswich in North Central’s regular-season finale. The winner plays the Burke vs. Gregory winner in the quarterfinals. 

Northwestern (2-6) at Herreid/Selby Area (9-0)

Time/location: 7 p.m. at Selby.

Outlook: No. 1 seed Herreid/Selby Area blanked Philip last week to complete an undefeated regular season. The Wolverines have erupted for 76 points in their season opener against Newell and have scored more than 50 points six times this season. HSA’s closest game was a 38-28 win over Timber Lake on Sept. 3. The high-powered Wolverines are averaging 53.5 points per game, while their defense has recorded 33 turnovers and 16 interceptions. HSA running back Brenden Begeman has 1,243 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. The 6-foot-2, 200-pounder also has seven touchdown receptions. Quarterback Tray Hettick (1,360 passing yards/20 touchdowns) engineers the high-scoring offensive attack. Trey Sayler (900 rushing yards/11 touchdowns) and Trevor Sayler (404 receiving yards/5 touchdowns) are also dynamic weapons for HSA’s offense. No. 16 Northwestern’s two wins were against Estelline/Hendricks (36-20) and Great Plains Lutheran (12-8). The Wildcats are paced by Fatahehi Faonelua, who has passed for 466 yards and five touchdowns. He’s also rushed for 417 yards and four touchdowns. The winner plays the Kadoka Area vs. Castlewood winner in the quarterfinals. 

Castlewood (5-3) at Kadoka Area (5-3)

Time/location: 5:30 p.m. at Kadoka.

Outlook: No. 8 Kadoka Area put together a five-win season and its three losses were against Wall (61-18), Herreid/Selby Area (60-6) and Lyman (36-16). That trio of teams are a combined 24-1 on the season. The Kougars won its final two games against New Underwood (30-16) and White River (64-36) to secure a first-round home contest. Castlewood began the season 5-1, but dropped contests against De Smet (60-7) and Oldham-Ramona/Rutland (32-18) to close the season. No. 9 Castlewood running back Carson Kirwan powers the offensive attack with 1,176 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns. Tristan Nielsen has thrown for 461 yards and seven touchdowns. The winner plays the Herreid/Selby Area vs. Northwestern winner in the quarterfinal round. 

Britton-Hecla (3-5) at De Smet (8-0)

Time/location: 7 p.m. at De Smet 

Outlook: No. 4 De Smet capped off an undefeated season with a comeback win over Dell Rapids St. Mary. The Bulldogs have pitched five shutouts, while they’re averaging 46.7 points per game on offense. De Smet’s balanced offensive attack is paced by quarterback Colt Wilkinson, who has thrown for 1,033 yards and 18 passing touchdowns. He’s added eight rushing touchdowns. Rett Osthus has hauled in 447 receiving yards and eight touchdown receptions. Kalen Garry adds 353 receiving yards and seven touchdown receptions. 

No. 13 Britton-Hecla snapped a three-game losing skid with a pair of wins over Waverly-South Shore (62-7) and Langford Area (55-14) to end the season. Britton-Hecla Aidan Fredrickson is coming off a 193-yard, three-touchdown performance against Langford Area. He’s rushed for 868 yards and 16 touchdowns, while passing for 667 yards and five touchdowns. BoDell Davidson has racked up 519 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns. The winner plays the Warner vs. Philip winner in the quarterfinals. 

Philip (3-5) at Warner (5-3)

Time/location: 7 p.m. at Warner.

Outlook: No. 5 Warner alternated wins and losses through the first five games, but rattled off three straight wins to close the season. Warner’s three defeats were against Leola-Frederick Area, Potter County and Ipswich, which are a combined 18-7 on the season. The Monarchs, who were last year’s Class 9A state runner-ups, capped this season’s three-game winning streak with a 35-24 victory over Hamlin. Hunter Cramer led Warner with 122 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the victory. Brodey Saurwein threw for 130 yards and had a touchdown reception to Zachary Wood. No. 12 Philip started the season 3-1, but enters the postseason on a four-game losing streak. The winner plays the De Smet vs. Britton-Hecla winner in the quarterfinals. 

Howard's John Callies carries the ball against Hanson on Oct. 15 in Alexandria. (Ryan Deal / 605 Sports)

Kimball/White Lake (2-6) at Howard (8-0)

Time/location: 6 p.m. at Howard.

Outlook: Howard punctuated an undefeated regular season with a 26-0 win over Hanson on Oct. 15. The No. 2 seeded Tigers also captured the Cornbelt Conference title with the victory. Howard has pitched four shutouts this season, while it is averaging 44 points per game this season. The run-heavy Tigers have racked up 2,593 rushing yards and 41 rushing touchdowns this season. Ty Beyer powers the balanced ground game with 719 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. John Callies is second on the team with 672 rushing yards and seven scores. Karsyn Feldhaus (509 yards/11 touchdowns) and Griffin Clubb (381 yards/5 touchdowns) also contribute to the ground game. Quarterback Taiden Hoyer has passed for 637 yards and 10 passing touchdowns this season. Jace Sifore has hauled in 312 receiving yards and seven touchdown receptions. No. 15 Kimball/White Lake enters the postseason on a six-game losing streak. The WiLdKats are led offensively by Holden Havlik, who has thrown for 982 yards and eight touchdowns. He’s added six rushing touchdowns and 209 yards on the ground. Carter Lenz (310) and Ryder Michalek (329) both have more than 300 receiving yards. Michalek has caught five touchdown receptions. Levi Nightingale has three rushing touchdowns. The winner plays the Wolsey-Wessington vs. Oldham-Ramona/Rutland in the quarterfinals. 

Oldham-Ramona/Rutland (4-4) at Wolsey-Wessington (5-3)

Time/location: 7 p.m. at Wolsey.

Outlook: No. 7 Wolsey-Wessington dropped a 66-40 decision against Class 9AA Parkston in its regular-season finale. The Warbirds, who were last year’s Class 9B state champs, have also lost to De Smet (30-20) and Platte-Geddes (33-12) this season. Wolsey-Wessington’s Blaze Herdman threw for 238 passing yards and two touchdown passes. Jemetrius Scott and Carson Zomer both caught touchdown receptions, while Scott had 121 receiving yards. Marty Gohn rushed for a pair of scores. Last week, No. 10 ORR outscored Castlewood 20-12 in the fourth quarter to come away with a 32-18 victory. ORR’s Will Matson threw for 72 yards, rushed for 68 yards and scored four total touchdowns in the win. Orion Albertson rushed for 76 yards and a touchdown. The winner plays the Howard vs. Kimball/White Lake winner in the quarterfinals. 

Gregory's Kade Stukel carries the ball against Parkston on Sept. 18 in Gregory. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Burke (5-3) at Gregory (5-3) 

Time/location: 7 p.m. at Gregory.

Outlook: The U.S. Highway 18 foes, who are separated by nine miles, will meet for the second time this season. The Gorillas topped the Cougars by a 34-6 decision on Sept. 3. Gregory won its final two games against Platte-Geddes (28-8) and Bon Homme (42-12) to earn the No. 6 seed in Class 9A. Last week, Rylan Peck rushed for a pair of touchdowns, while Owen Hansen and Kade Stukel each had a rushing score. No. 11 Burke capped off its 5-3 regular season with a 40-34 comeback win over Gayville-Volin last week. The Cougars outscored the Raiders, 26-8, in the final quarter to earn the victory. Ben Witt paces Burke with 1,009 passing yards and 13 touchdowns, while rushing for 225 yards and four more scores. Witt’s top target is Bryce Frank, who has 552 receiving yards and six touchdown receptions. Taron Serr (735 rushing yards/14 touchdowns) and Jackson Bauld (455 rushing yards/8 touchdowns) power the rushing attack. Serr also has 208 receiving yards and three touchdown receptions.