By Ryan Deal 

605 Sports

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

Estelline/Hendricks (1-7) at Avon (8-0) 

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

Outlook: No. 1 seed Avon is the last undefeated team in Class 9B and it sports wins over six other teams in the class. The Pirates average 51.7 points per game and just scored 76 points in a win over Centerville on Oct. 8. Avon’s two closest games were against Gayville-Volin (36-32) and Hitchcock-Tulare (30-28). Avon quarterback Riley Rucktaeschel has thrown for 491 yards, 11 touchdowns, while rushing for 561 yards and 13 more scores. Brady Bierema has rushed for 1,334 yards and 20 touchdowns. Jaden Stahl (618 rushing yards/11 touchdowns) and Lincoln Thury (251 receiving yards/6 touchdowns) also contribute to Avon’s potent offense. Estelline/Hendricks’ lone win came against Waverly-South Shore (40-0) in the second game of the season. The No. 16 seed Redhawks are on a six-game losing streak. The winner plays the Alcester-Hudson vs. Sully Buttes winner in the quarterfinals. 

Sully Buttes (4-4) at Alcester-Hudson (4-3) 

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

Outlook: Alcester-Hudson dropped three straight games to start the season, but rattled off four straight wins to earn the No. 8 seed a first-round home contest. The Cubs have averaged 49 points during their four-game winning streak. Alcester-Hudson running back Jovey Christensen racked up 1,525 rushing yards and 23 rushing touchdowns. He erupted for 547 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in Alcester-Hudson’s 70-54 win over Centerville on Sept. 17. Sully Buttes has alternated wins and losses the past five games, including a 50-0 loss against Potter County on Oct. 15. No. 9 Sully Buttes owns wins over three other Class 9B playoff teams. The winner plays the Estelline/Hendricks vs. Avon winner in the quarterfinals. 

Gayville-Volin's Kyle Hirsch carries the ball against Corsica-Stickney on Sept. 10 in Corsica. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Langford Area (1-7) at Gayville-Volin (5-2)

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

Outlook: The No. 4 seeded Raiders picked up victories over four other Class 9B playoff teams, while they narrowly lost to No. 1 Avon (36-32) on Sept. 24. Gayville-Volin are scoring 42.5 points per game and scored a season-high 57 points against Centerville on Oct. 1. Quarterback Nate Quatier paces the offense and is coming off 126 passing yards in last week’s loss to Burke. Andrew Gustad added 180 rushing yards and two touchdowns in the loss. Kyle Hirsch also contributes to the offensive attack. No. 13 Langford Area’s lone victory came against Waverly-South Shore (61-31) on Sept. 17 and it is on a four-game losing streak. Lion quarterback Ben Gustafson scored both touchdowns in last week’s 55-14 loss against Britton-Hecla. The winner plays the Dell Rapids St. Mary vs. Corsica-Stickney winner in the quarterfinals. 

Corsica-Stickney's Cole Feenstra (14) is tackled by an Avon defender on Aug. 20 in Avon. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Corsica-Stickney (2-6) at Dell Rapids St. Mary (4-3)

Time/location: 6 p.m. at Dell Rapids.

Outlook: The No. 5 Cardinals led Class 9A No. 1 De Smet, 16-14, in last week’s regular season finale. But the Bulldogs allowed 20 straight points to avoid the upset. The Cardinals, who were last year’s Class 9B state runner-ups, began this season 1-2 before winning three straight to get above .500. Dell Rapids St. Mary also lost to Class 9B playoff teams Gayville-Volin (42-8) and Avon (48-14). Noah Olund paced the Cardinals with 122 rushing yards on 21 carries in the loss. The No. 12 Jaguars’ two wins were against Colome (46-6) and Centerville (42-12). Tyson Wentland paces the offense with 566 passing yards and four passing touchdowns, while Shad Bosma has thrown for 522 yards and six touchdowns. Caden Vandrongelen (537 rushing yards/5 touchdowns) and Cole Feenstra (409 receiving yards/2 touchdowns) also contribute to the Jaguars’ offense. The winner plays the Gayville-Volin vs. the Langford Area vs. Gayville-Volin winner in the quarterfinal round. 

Faulkton Area's Roman DiMaria carries the ball against North Central on Oct. 8 in Faulkton. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Colome (1-7) at Faulkton Area (6-2)

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

Outlook: The Trojans won five of their last six games to secure the No. 2 seed in Class 9B. They own wins over three other Class 9B teams, including No. 3 Potter County (36-18) and No. 6 Hitchcock-Tulare (28-24). The Trojans’ two losses came against Class 9A playoff teams Warner (30-14) and Ipswich (20-6). Faulkton Area quarterback Parker Geditz has thrown for 1,005 yards and 13 touchdowns, while rushing for three more scores. Simon Bowar added 690 rushing yards and eight touchdowns out of the backfield. Hunter Niederbaumer has hauled in 371 receiving yards and three touchdown receptions. The No. 15 Cowboys’ lone victory was against Sunshine Bible Academy (36-12) on Aug. 27 and they’re on a six-game losing streak. They’ve lost to five other Class 9B playoff teams. Eli Vobr threw for 88 yards and passed for 62 yards in Colome’s loss against Alcester-Hudson in the regular-season finale. The winner plays the Harding County/Bison vs. New Underwood winner in the quarterfinals. 

New Underwood (3-4) at Harding County/Bison (5-3)

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

Outlook: No. 7 Harding County/Bison picked up wins over Newell and Faith in the final two weeks to solidify a first-round home contest. Kelby Hett has thrown for 429 yard and six touchdowns this season. Keegan Hett has caught 28 passes for 460 yards and six receiving touchdowns. Rylee Veal adds 341 passing yards and five touchdown passes. The Ranchers have already defeated New Underwood, 56-6, on Sept. 9 in Buffalo. No. 10 New Underwood is coming off a 42-8 loss against Class 9A Wall. Cole Knuppe threw for 84 yards and had a touchdown reception to Cash Albers in the loss. The winner plays the Faulkton Area vs. Colome winner in the quarterfinals. 

Jones County's Kaden Kinsley (16) throws a pass against Sunshine Bible Academy on Oct. 1 in Miller. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Jones County (1-7) at Potter County (7-2) 

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

Outlook: Potter County dropped a 36-18 decision against Faulkton Area in the season opener, but strung together six straight wins to help secure the No. 3 seed. The Battlers narrowly defeated Warner (12-7) and Hitchcock-Tulare (44-38) in back-to-back weeks to highlight the winning streak. Grant Luikens orchestrates the Battler offense and is coming off four passing touchdowns in a win over Sully Buttes on Oct. 15. Luikens also recorded 229 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns in the Hitchcock-Tulare victory. Cooper Logan, Seth Sharp and Drake Bassett also contribute to the Battler offense. No. 14 Jones County’s lone victory was against Sunshine Bible Academy (45-22) on Oct. 1. The Coyotes have been shutout four times this season. The winner plays the Hitchcock-Tulare vs. Faith winner in the quarterfinal round. 

Faith (3-5) at Hitchcock-Tulare (6-3)

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

Outlook: No. 6 Hitchcock-Tulare narrowly lost to Class 9B’s three top teams Avon (30-28), Faulkton Area (28-24) and Potter County (44-38). Patriot quarterback Jack Boomsma has thrown for more than 650 yards and rushed for more than 380 yards, while scoring 15 total touchdowns on offense. Erik Salmen has racked up 935 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns. Landon Puffer, Kyle Hamilton and T.J. Salmen also contributes to Hitchcock-Tulare’s offensive attack. No. 11 Faith have been shutout four times this season, including a 56-0 defeat against Harding County/Bison in the finale. The winner plays the Jones County vs. Potter County winner in the quarterfinals.