Week 2 Recap: Maple Grove

Quarterback Ryan Schipper connected with wide receiver Tanner Wermerskirchen for a 14-yard touchdown with 3:58 left in the fourth quarter but it wasn’t enough as Maple Grove drained the clock on the following drive, giving the Crimson the 9-6 victory over the Lakers Sept. 8 at Maple Grove High School.

The Crimson led 9-0 at halftime with Schipper’s touchdown pass being the only score of the second half.

“Maple Grove is good and will definitely be one of the better (class) 6A teams by the end of the season,” Prior Lake head coach Matt Gegenheimer said. “It’s fun to play those types of teams but is also a challenge when you’re trying to get into a rhythm.”

The Lakers had their best field possession on their first drive of the game, starting on Maple Grove’s side of the field at the 47-yard line after a defensive stop and a short punt but three plays later Prior Lake was forced to punt as well.

On the ensuing possession, the Laker defense forced another Maple Grove punt but the ball bounced off Prior Lake returner Preston Jelen and was recovered by the crimson, giving them a short field with the ball on the Laker 24-yard line.

After a long run on the following play, the Laker defense came up with a big stop again when linebacker Zach Wick forced a fumble that was recovered on the 7-yard line by linebacker Ryder Folsom.

However, PL went backward on the next two plays as Jelen was unable to get out of his own end zone, resulting in a safety and giving Maple Grove an early 2-0 lead.

Since the resulting Laker kickoff was from the 20-yard line due to the safety, Prior Lake was unable to kick the ball deep, allowing a return that gave the Crimson good field position at the Laker 38-yard line.

Seven plays later, Maple Grove scored on a 5-yard carry by running back Evan Hull with 10:19 to go in the second quarter, giving the Crimson the 9-0 lead.

Maple Grove had a chance to increase their lead right away as Laker kick returner Keaton Schroeder fumbled the ensuing return but safety Derek Kay intercepted a pass a few plays later to end the threat and keep the score at 9-0 at the half.

“Our defense played outstanding all night,” Gegenheimer said. “The tough thing was that they had to be on the field way too much, particularly in the first half, so offensively we need to make sure we move the chains and create good field position.”

The Laker offense ran 15 plays in the first half while the Crimson ran 36 plays.

The Lakers had an opportunity to cut into the lead on the opening drive of the second half when Wermerskirchen got open behind the Maple Grove defense but quarterback Russ Tanner was unable to find him and the Lakers punted a few plays later.

The teams traded defensive stops to close out the third quarter.

The Lakers had a 16 play drive to start the fourth quarter that began at their own 14-yard line and ended at the Crimson 10 when Spencer Shaver had the ball knocked from his arms.

Prior Lake’s defense got the ball back a few plays later though when lineman Zach Whaley ripped the ball from Hull’s grasp, which was then recovered by cornerback Jaden Dorn.

The Lakers then put together a 10-play drive, highlighted by a fourth down completion to Wermerskirchen, a long scramble by Schipper and the touchdown pass.

“He gave us a big spark” Gegenheimer said of Schipper, who led the Laker offense for much of the second half. “I’m very proud of him… to come into a very tight ballgame, in an away game, in a pretty intense environment, he brought calmness and stability to our offense.”

Maple Grove blocked kicker Daniel Wee’s extra point attempt, keeping the score at 9-6.

The Crimson ran out the clock on the ensuing possession, finishing the game off with a conversion on fourth-and-one near midfield.

“The thing I like most about our team is that there is never any quit,” Gegenheimer said. “We’re a very resilient team and if we keep that up, we’ll be a very tough team to beat as we go down the stretch.”

Fifth-ranked Maple Grove could be ranked as high as second when the new 6A and metro rankings are released later this week as the teams ranked second through fourth all lost in Week 2.

The next opponent: Eden Prairie

The Lakers will not have an easy task this week either as they return home to face top-ranked perennial powerhouse Eden Prairie on Sept. 15.

The Eagles defeated then second-ranked Lakeville North 41-13 in Week 2 after a 35-7 drubbing of Eastview in Week 1.

“This is definitely a good EP team… they’re good every year,” Gegenheimer said. “They are extremely talented both in terms of size and skill players.”

EP has been led through the air by quarterback Cole Kramer who is 11 for 14 for 194 yards and 4 touchdowns in the two games.

Solo Falaniko, who ran for 172 yards on 17 carries against Lakeville North, carries a strong Eden Prairie rushing attack as well.

The Eagles have two leading receivers with Jack Tuttle and Daejon Wolfe, both over 80 yards receiving.

Prior Lake dropped a Week 6 contest to the Eagles last season 29-0.

That Eden Prairie team made it to the Prep Bowl, losing to now-reigning state champion Totino-Grace.

The Eagles have won the state championship in four of the last six seasons including a four-peat from 2011 to 2014.

“It should be another fun, exciting challenge that I think is fun for high school football,” Gegenheimer said. “If we can take some of that momentum we had in the fourth quarter of the Maple Grove game, play a clean game, secure the football and take advantage of opportunities when we get them, I think we can compete with anybody, whether that’s EP or anybody else.”

Notes

Kickoff against Eden Prairie on Friday is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Dan Patch Stadium.

If you can’t make it to the game, you can watch the online video stream with Ben Tressel and John Wahlstrom.

Follow @plhsfootball, @pl4lstreaming and @pllakers on Twitter for updates.

Be sure to check back next week for a recap of the Eden Prairie game as well as a preview of the Week 4 matchup against Minnetonka.

Taylor Smith can be reached at tay1@me.com or on Twitter at @taysmith2013.