Edina football defeats Eden Prairie in Class 6A semifinal
MINNEAPOLIS — The Edina Hornets (9-3) defeated the Eden Prairie Eagles (11-1) 28-7 in the MSHSL Class 6A football semifinals on Friday at U.S. Bank Stadium.
To beat Eden Prairie, Edina needed a strong start. The undefeated Eagles are a run dominant team that controls the clock and controls the game. It’s a formula that’s worked for a team with an 11-0 record entering the night and a program with 11 titles in the past 27 years.
To take an early lead means Eden Prairie is forced to play out of character, and it forces the Eagles to throw the ball.
Edina scored its first touchdown of the game on a 10 play, 72-yard drive that ended with an 11-yard touchdown pass on a slant from Mason West to Sonny Villegas at the end of the first quarter.
The Hornets scored two more times in the first half. West found Trillion Sorell open in the back of the end zone for a 14-0 lead, and running back John Warpinski ran in a 3-yard touchdown pass for a 21-0 lead.
“We mixed it up,” Edina head coach Jason Potts said. “We took our shots. … I thought if we could get up early that’s going to give us a huge advantage, so I’m super proud of that.”
The Hornets offense achieved what the Eden Prairie offense could not — balance. Edina finished with 181 yards on the ground and 170 yards in the air compared to 163 on the ground for Eden Prairie and only 46 through the air.
“The Grim Reaper is our O-line; they’ve nicknamed themselves that,” Potts said. “They did a good job of getting low pad level, getting low technique and having great steps. And then Warpinski is a warrior. He can take that workload. We can do both”
Warpinski finished with 35 rushes on 197 yards and one touchdown. West finished with 170 passing yards on eight completions and three touchdowns.
Edina's defense stifled the Eagles throughout the first half. The Eagles' promising drive into Hornets territory ended with an interception, and the Hornets turned the Eagles over twice and held them on a fourth down attempt.
In the third quarter, West connected on a 46-yard pass to Villegas to set up a 16-yard touchdown pass to Swinney Meyer and a 28-0 lead.
Eden Prairie broke Edina's run with a 13-yard touchdown run from Jeremiah Fredericks near the end of the third quarter.
After a stop, Eden Prairie had an 8-play drive stopped again on fourth down. The Hornets proceeded to convert on more third downs and burn the clock for the win.
The Hornets finished 8-for-12 on third downs while Eden Prairie finished 3-for-10 on third down and 1-for-5 on fourth down.
“We’ve got some weapons outside,” Edina senior offensive lineman Brody Perry said. “If we give [West] a little bit of time, we’re going to give those guys time and let them work and get those yards.”
Edina fell to Eden Prairie earlier in the season for the start of a three-game losing streak. But the Hornets had a different attitude and attack tonight.
“I think Edina had a little more inspiration and played a little harder than we did, to be honest with you,” Eden Prairie head coach Mike Grant said. “We played 11 really good football games and never had a let down.”
Edina will play Centennial in the Class 6A Prep Bowl on November 24 at 7 p.m. at U.S. Bank Stadium.
“We started high school football our freshman year, we didn’t win a game,” senior Owen Kemper said. “We knew right away that we’ve got to get to work. It’s a great group and we’ve just been working our tails off.”
