ABOVE: Fairmont’s Hadan Toomer goes up for a jump ball against Luverne in the Section 3AAA Football semifinals Saturday at Mahoney Field.
FAIRMONT – The Fairmont defense held strong against both the run and the pass as it punched its ticket to the Section 3AAA football finals with a 27-14 win over Luverne on Saturday at Mahoney Field.
On offense, Fairmont was able to work the Luverne defense and get the job done.
“We just took advantage of what they were trying to do,” said Fairmont football head coach Mat Mahoney. “They were really low in the box trying to stop EJ [Elijah Johson] and we just took a couple shots there, a lot of credit to Joe [Long] for staying in there and making some beautiful throws. Defense did a great job stalling out their run and we did a really good job winning and controlling the lane.”
Leading the Fairmont squad was quarterback Long, who went 10 for 16 and 200 yards with two passing touchdowns and Nolan Schultze reeled in three passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, running back Elijah Johnson, who had 25 rushes and 200 yards and two touchdowns while catching one for a 44-yard touchdown.
The first quarter opened with a squib kick by Luverne hoping to catch Fairmont off guard, but it was unsuccessful. Fairmont got to work in the usual fashion, handing the ball to Elijah Johnson, who opened up the Luverne defense with a nine yard run before breaking free for a 45-yard run that resulted in a touchdown with 10:42 left in the first. Luverne responded with a 34-yard touchdown pass by Carter Sehr to level things out 7-7 after putting together a 10 play, 74-yard drive. Fairmont showed off its versatility by taking to the air when quarterback Joe Long connected with Nolan Schultze for a 65-yard touchdown pass with 6:22 left on the clock, giving Fairmont the 14-7 lead, closing out the scoring in the first.
Luverne chewed through the clock in the second quarter but was unable to capitalize before handing the ball back to Fairmont. Elijah Johnson did what he does best, finding his way into the secondary and breaking free for a 52-yard touchdown run with 2:02 left on the clock in the quarter, extending the Fairmont lead to 21-7. Hank Artz proved to be a menace to the Luverne offense, sacking Sehr for a five yard loss to end the half.
The third quarter turned into a defensive battle after both teams had a chance to feel what the other was doing on the field. Luverne pulled a play out of the Waseca play book, getting the ball out to the flat quickly, but Fairmont had learned its lesson in that game and the defenses held, with neither team giving up a score in the third quarter.
Opening the fourth quarter, Luverne turned the ball over on downs to set up a 35-yard connection between Long and Schultze. The play ultimately resulted in a scoreless drive for Fairmont, but the defense forced a four-and-out to regain possession. This set up a quick pass from Long to Johnson that connected for a 47-yard touchdown, giving Fairmont a 27-7 lead after a missed PAT. Luverne was able to break free for one more score, cutting into the Fairmont lead before the final whistle closed things 27-14, securing Fairmont’s spot in the Section Championship game.
Fairmont gets a revenge matchup at 7 p.m. Friday against Waseca for the Section 3AAA title in New Ulm.