Twenty-eight teams began competition Thursday in the football state tournament semifinals at U.S. Bank Stadium, and four teams claimed spots in next week’s Prep Bowl.

Edina’s 42-41 Class 6A victory over Minnetonka, with the Hornets scoring five touchdowns in a row, closed Day 1 of the semis. Read that game story here.

The first team to advance was Orono, which defeated Marshall in overtime in Class 4A. Read that game story here.

Thursday’s schedule:

Class 4A: 10:30 a.m., Orono 15, Marshall 14 (OT)

Nine-Player: 1 p.m., Hills-Beaver Creek 30, Fertile-Beltrami 14; 4 p.m., Hillcrest Lutheran Academy 27, Kittson County Central 21

Class 6A: 7 p.m., Edina 42, Minnetonka 41

Prep Bowl matchups:

Friday, Nov. 21

Class 1A: 10 a.m.

Class 4A: 1 p.m., Orono vs. Kasson-Mantorville or Grand Rapids

Class 2A: 4 p.m.

Class 6A: 7 p.m., Edina vs. Moorhead or Lakeville South

Saturday, Nov. 22

Nine-Player: 10 a.m., Hills-Beaver Creek vs. Hillcrest Lutheran Academy

Class 3A: 1 p.m.

Class 5A: 4 p.m.

Study the state tournament brackets here. All games were streamed live on NSPN.

Extra reading: Strib Varsity writers predict state semifinal football results; Lakeville South’s Ben Burk sees gains from coaching rollercoaster

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Final: Edina 42, Minnetonka 41

The Skippers go 46 yards in five plays and finish off the drive with a 6-yard scoring burst by Quinton Restrepo. They went for two and brought Caleb Francois in off the bench. He never had a chance and was stopped at the 4. Edina recovered the onside kick and took over at midfield with 1:34 left in the fourth quarter. Two runs by Chase Bjorgaard picked up a first down and clinched the Edina victory.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Edina 42, Minnetonka 35

Minnetonka forces an Edina punt. The Skippers then quickly move into Edina territory. A little more than two minutes to play.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Edina 42, Minnetonka 35

A little luck went Minnetonka’s way. A potential interception by Edina bounced off the hands of a Hornets defensive back, who likely should have made the interception, and into the hands of running back Quinten Restrepo, setting up the Skippers at the Edina 9. One play later, Caden Gutzmer hit Charles Simonson in the end zone to make this a one-score game. It’s not over yet.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Edina 42, Minnetonka 28

Edina is pulling away with less than nine minutes remaining. Mason West to Jabari Strader for 44 yards and another score. While the Minnetonka receivers are battling the dropsies, the Edina receivers are making plays.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Edina 35, Minnetonka 28

The comeback is complete. Mason West leads Edina on a 71-yard march to the end zone, doing the honors himself with an 8-yard scoring run. Minnetonka takes over at its 20 with no Caleb Francois.

— Jim Paulsen

End 3Q: Minnetonka 28, Edina 28

Bad sign for the Minnetonka hopeful. Not only are the Skippers struggling to move the ball, but Caleb Francois limped off the field after their last possession and was being administered to on the sideline.

— Jim Paulsen

3Q: Minnetonka 28, Edina 28

Well, momentum has sure shifted to Edina. After Minnetonka sputtered on its opening drive — another dropped pass by the Skippers receivers; they’ve had a few tonight — Edina’s Mason West went to work. The Hornets started at their own 6 and went 94 yards for the game-tying score, a 71-yard pass from West to Sammy Stephenson.

— Jim Paulsen

Halftime: Minnetonka 28, Edina 21

There’s the end of a very entertaining first half. Edina showed a lot of spunk in the final minutes, recovering two Minnetonka fumbles. The Hornets turned one into points but didn’t have enough time to do anything with the second.

That second one was questionable to begin with. With 12 seconds left before halftime, Caden Gutzmer was hit while throwing and the officials ruled it a fumble. It was reviewed and confirmed, but it still looked like the wrong call.

Caleb Francois had 206 yards rushing and three touchdowns in the first half. Edina’s Mason West completed nine of 14 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Minnetonka 28, Edina 21

And here comes Edina. After a Caleb Francois fumble, the Hornets went 45 yards in four plays, scoring on a 19-yard pass from Mason West to Jabari Strader. Minnetonka is coming back to Earth.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Minnetonka 28, Edina 14

Edina got a little tricky with a halfback pass from Chase Bjorgaard to Jabari Strader for a 50-yard gain with 3:18 left in the half. Bjorgaard scored two plays later, running in a direct snap from the 2-yard line.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Minnetonka 28, Edina 7

What a first half by Caleb Francois. He scored his third touchdown of the half on a 4-yard run. He’s sitting at 180 yards on 17 carries. He’s looking a little gassed, however. He ran out of bounds on a 21-yard run earlier in the drive. And he was signaling to the Minnetonka sideline at one point, appearing to ask for a breather.

— Jim Paulsen

How the Nine-Player championship matchup came to be

A pair of 12-0 teams will play next week for the Nine-Player championship.

Hillcrest Lutheran advanced by defeating Kittson County Central 27-21. Hills-Beaver Creek got there by beating Fertile-Beltrami 30-14.

They’ll play Saturday, Nov. 22, for the championship.

Hills-Beaver Creek played for the state title last season and lost to Fertile-Beltrami, the team it defeated Thursday. This is Hills-Beaver Creek’s fourth trip to state in five years.

Hillcrest Lutheran is entirely without U.S. Bank Stadium experience. It last played in the state tournament in 2016.

1Q: Minnetonka 21, Edina 7

Caleb Francois showed off his speed, shifting into high gear to blow through the middle of the Edina defense and outrace all the Hornets on a 41-yard touchdown run with two seconds left in the quarter. Francois already has 134 yards rushing on 10 carries.

— Jim Paulsen

1Q: Minnetonka 14, Edina 7

Edina says not so fast. The Hornets pulled themselves off the carpet and went 72 yards in six plays, most of it on Mason West’s arm. He hit Jabari Strader on a 28-yard skinny post to close the early gap to seven.

— Jim Paulsen

1Q: Minnetonka 14, Edina 0

How quick was Minnetonka’s second possession? It lasted 12 seconds. After an Edina punt, the Skippers took a deep shot. QB Caden Gutzmer laid a beautifully thrown ball to Parker Burkhardt streaking down the right sideline for a 67-yard score. One play, one touchdown.

— Jim Paulsen

1Q: Minnetonka 7, Edina 0

Following an interception that killed an Edina drive, Minnetonka went 67 yards in seven plays — six of them runs by Caleb Francois — to take the game’s first lead. Francois picked his way through the Edina defense from 12 yards out, plowing through tacklers for the final 2 yards. Francois is a much more physical runner than he appears.

— Jim Paulsen

Final: Hillcrest Lutheran 27, Kittson County Central 21

On fourth-and-1, Hillcrest Lutheran QB Ethan Swedberg gets a yard and a foot, just enough for a first down. The spot was reviewed and the call confirmed. Hillcrest Lutheran goes into victory formation. The Comets survive.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 27, Kittson County Central 21

Kittson Central looked like it was prepping for a game-tying touchdown when Hillcrest defensive back Sean Berge came to the rescue. Berge picked off Kittson quarterback Eli Peterson at the Hillcrest 40. The Comets are facing second-and-7 at the Kittson 45 with the clock running down.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 27, Kittson County Central 21

Suddenly, it’s a one-score game. Kittson County Central pulled to within six on a 22-yard pass from Eli Peterson to Kellen Johnson. The Bearcats then stopped a Hillcrest drive at midfield. We got a game.

— Jim Paulsen

3Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 27, Kittson County Central 7

Quarterback Ethan Swedberg powered over from 5 yards out to add to Hillcrest Lutheran’ lead. It’s Swedberg’s second rushing touchdown of the game. He and receiver Drew Fischer have been a dangerous combo for the Comets. Fischer has 10 receptions for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Fischer and Swedberg hooked up three times on the drive that led to the touchdown.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 21, Kittson County Central 7

Hillcrest Lutheran accepted the challenge from Kittson Central and got the touchdown back on its next possession. Ethan Swedberg to Drew Fischer for a 2-yard score. Second touchdown reception of the game for Fischer. The two-point conversion is successful.

— Jim Paulsen

Halftime: Hillcrest Lutheran 21, Kittson County Central 7

The Bearcats reached the Comets 17 just before halftime, but two passes into the end zone fell incomplete.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 13, Kittson County Central 7

Kittson County Central regrouped and got itself back into the game. The Bearcats went 66 yards in 10 plays, with QB Eli Peterson sweeping left for a 6-yard touchdown.

— Jim Paulsen

1Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 13, Kittson County Central 0

The first quarter has been all Hillcrest Lutheran. A strong pass rush and a tipped pass resulted in a Comets interception by Eli Walkup, who returned the ball to the Kittson County Central 9. Two plays later, Ethan Swedberg scored on a keeper from 3 yards. It’s not the start Kittson County Central hoped for.

— Jim Paulsen

1Q: Hillcrest Lutheran 6, Kittson County Central 0

Hillcrest Lutheran drew first blood in this battle of unbeatens. The Comets took the opening kickoff and drove 67 yards in 11 plays, with quarterback Ethan Swedberg hitting Drew Fischer down the seam for a 19-yard touchdown.

— Jim Paulsen

Final: Hills-Beaver Creek 30, Fertile-Beltrami 14

It took nearly a year, but Hills-Beaver Creek players finally got the unpleasant taste out of their collective mouths. The No. 1-ranked Patriots leaned into defense Thursday, intercepting five passes, to beat Fertile-Beltrami 30-14. Micah Bush had two of those five picks and added seven tackles for Hills-Beaver Creek, which improved to 12-0. Fertile-Beltrami had defeated Hills-Beaver Creek 20-8 in the 2024 Nine-Player championship game, but this time deeper Hills-Beaver Creek was clearly the better team.

Junior running back Eduardo Wegener carried the ball 20 times for 162 yards and a touchdown for the Patriots.

— Jim Paulsen

4Q: Hills-Beaver Creek 30, Fertile-Beltrami 14

Fertile-Beltrami starts the fourth quarter at the HBC 22. It’s third-and-2. The Falcons need to punch it in here.

— Jim Paulsen

Halftime: Hills-Beaver Creek 30, Fertile-Beltrami 14

Micah Bush took a direct snap and strolled untouched into the end zone from 2 yards out, capping an 11-play, 56-yard drive for the No. 1-ranked Patriots. When Fertile-Beltrami took possession, Bush stymied a Falcons drive with his second interception of the game.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Hills-Beaver Creek 24, Fertile-Beltrami 14

The Falcons took advantage of numerous Hills-Beaver Creek penalties on their ensuing possession, pulling within two on a 6-yard run by Creed Tollefson. Hills-Beaver Creek had an immediate answer. Patriots running back Eduardo Wegener went 69 yards two plays later for a touchdown.

— Jim Paulsen

2Q: Hills-Beaver Creek 16, Fertile-Beltrami 6

A little controversy on Hills-Beaver Creek’s touchdown. On fourth-and-goal from the Fertile-Beltrami 4-yard line, Brodie Metzger appeared to get stopped short of the goal line. But he fumbled the ball and it ended up in the end zone. Patriots lineman Hunter Leenderts recovered in the end zone. After a lengthy conversation, officials awarded Hills-Beaver Creek the touchdown.

— Jim Paulsen

1Q: Hills-Beaver Creek 8, Fertile-Betrami 6

Creed Tollefson scored on an 85-yard touchdown to Fertile-Beltrami on the board. Two-point conversion failed.

1Q: Hills-Beaver Creek 8, Fertile-Betrami 0

Hills-Beaver Creek strikes first on the opening drive, with a short pass from quarterback Jamin Metzger to Brodie Metzger, who dashed up the right sideline for a 45-yard passing touchdown. Two-point conversion is good to get the Patriots off to a rolling start with nine minutes still to go in the first quarter.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

Pregame: Fertile-Beltrami vs. Hills-Beaver Creek

Our first Nine-Player semifinal has defending state champion Fertile-Beltrami (8-3) looking to fend off Hills-Beaver Creek (11-0) in a rematch of last year’s Prep Bowl. The Falcons have reached the state tournament the past four seasons, including a runner-up finish in 2021 and their 20-8 Prep Bowl win last year. South Dakota commit and Mr. Football finalist Micah Bush is all over the field for the Patriots, who are vying for their first state title since 1990.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

Final: Orono 15, Marshall 14, OT

Orono won on a two-point conversion, a pass from Griffin Mauer floated over the shoulder of sophomore Lincoln Stinar in the corner of the end zone.

Orono won the toss and elected to defend first. Marshall senior Andrew Stelter rushed for 6 yards, then a 4-yard touchdown to put the Tigers up, but Orono answered shortly after. Mauer had to scramble to the right sideline and heave a pass to senior Simon Vinton. Unsportsmanlike conduct was called for a ball spiked in celebration, moving the extra point back to the 35-yard line. Orono decided to go for the two-point conversion anyway and booked the program’s first trip to the Prep Bowl.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

End 4Q: Marshall 7, Orono 7

It didn’t take long for a state semifinal to head to overtime this year. One game, in fact.

Orono kept this one tied and avoided fourth-quarter chaos with a solid defensive stand after a short 12-yard punt out of their own end zone took a massive Marshall bounce and set up the Tigers on the 26-yard line. But the Spartans have held firm, stiffening up again against the Marshall run game late.

Marshall nearly found another break in the final minute, as Levi Maeyaert floated a deep pass to Ethan Boeck for a tiptoe sideline catch that was close enough to launch the Tigers players into celebration but was ruled out of bounds.

Orono had to escape another dicey situation and not let the Marshall defense win on what would have been, essentially, a walk-off safety as Tigers punter Milo Swenson dropped a punt to the Orono 1-yard line with 57 seconds to play.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

4Q: Orono 7, Marshall 7

You could hear a pin drop in U.S. Bank Stadium, only a few hushed, nervous voices rising up from the lower bowl, as the officials took a timeout to measure whether Marshall’s rushing attempt on 4th-and-1 on Orono’s 18-yard line was good with eight minutes to play. It was short, leading to the Orono defense running to the Spartans sideline in celebration. Junior linebacker Lucas LaBelle, who leads the Spartans in tackles, was credited with the crucial stop.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

3Q: Marshall 7, Orono 7

This Marshall rushing corps is too good to stay quiet the whole night. Senior running back Andrew Stelter heated up on Marshall’s first drive of the second half, which ate up most of the third quarter. He had six carries for 42 yards — more than he had all first half — including the drive’s finale, a 6-yard rushing touchdown, his 21st of the season.

After entering the red zone off an Orono pass interference call, Marshall had to convert a fourth-and-4 on the 13-yard line to keep the drive alive. A 5-yard pass from Levi Maeyaert to receiver Rocco Rignell did the job.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

3Q: Orono 7, Marshall 0

It looked as if Marshall’s defense might hold Orono to a deep three-and-out to start the half, but Orono quarterback Griffin Mauer connected with receiver Bennett Halverson for a 14-yard slant pass on third-and-9, giving the Spartans the first down. But on the next set of downs, an Orono false start turned a fourth-and-short that the Spartans were going for near midfield into a punt.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

3Q: Orono 7, Marshall 0

We’ve got the second half underway, with Orono receiving. The Spartans are two quarters away from their first Prep Bowl.

Trailing is a situation the Tigers have rarely faced during their undefeated season. They’ll look to get more out of their usually strong ground game in the second half.

The winner of this game will face the team to come out of Friday’s semifinal between Kasson-Mantorville and Grand Rapids. Neither of those teams has won a Prep Bowl either, meaning we’ll have a first-time champion in Class 4A this year.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

Halftime: Orono 7, Marshall 0

Just like their regular-season meeting, this one has been defensive-dominant. Neither team has taken a snap in the red zone, the only score coming on a 31-yard passing touchdown from Orono quarterback Griffin Mauer, tipped into the hands of receiver Bennett Halverson.

Marshall’s been held to just 66 yards offensively by a speedy Spartans defense. Orono’s success in the air has made the difference on the other side of the ball. Two big gains from Mauer make up most of his 86 passing yards (10-for-13), which are already more than Marshall gave up on average this season (59.8). Yet, Marshall’s defense has sacked him three times, one of the sacks pulling the wheels off Orono’s final drive of the half. The Spartans get the ball to start the third quarter.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

2Q: Orono 7, Marshall 0

With Marshall on the Orono 40-yard line, Spartans linebacker Grant Eslinger forced a fumble that popped out and into the arms of junior linebacker Max Spronk, setting up Orono back in shallow Tigers’ territory.

But a 9-yard sack by Marshall senior JR Vierstraete, the Tigers’ all-time leader in the category and a Southwest Minnesota State commit, set up a deep third down that the Spartans weren’t able to convert. Orono went for it on fourth-and-21 on the Tigers 33 and gave up another sack, this time by sophomore Braedyn Van Meveren, giving Marshall solid field position with three minutes left in the half.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

2Q: Orono 7, Marshall 0

Orono junior receiver Bennett Halverson needs to clip his second-quarter touchdown and save that highlight somewhere special. At the 31-yard line, quarterback Griffin Mauer rolled right and launched a pass to the doorstep of the Marshall end zone. The ball dropped just a step behind Halverson and his defender, junior defensive back Carter Manthei, who tipped the ball. Halverson, stumbling forward, managed to snag the ball out of the air and fall into the end zone for his seventh receiving touchdown of the year.

Mauer, now up to 15 passing touchdowns this year, kicks the Spartans’ extra points too.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

End of 1Q: Marshall 0, Orono 0

It’s not all too surprising, based on a 13-12 regular season score in this same matchup, to see this semifinal scoreless at the end of the first quarter. Orono’s defense has been able to mostly stifle Marshall’s run-heavy offense — five players have posted 250-plus yards this season. Marshall has 41 yards on the ground so far.

Orono quarterback Griffin Mauer helped the Spartans end the quarter with possession. Deep in the Spartans’ own territory on 3rd-and-13, he got Orono out of a pinch by finding senior Adrian Licursi up the middle for a 30-yard pass.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer

Pregame: Orono vs. Marshall, Class 4A

As Edina head coach Jason Potts hollered after the Hornets booked their trip to the Class 6A semifinals last week, “The Bank is open!”… U.S. Bank Stadium, that is.

We’ve got three days of state football semifinals lined up, kicking off with Marshall (11-0) facing Orono (8-3) in Class 4A.

Both of these teams reached the state tournament last year, and Orono (8-3) has made the tournament quarterfinals three of the past five seasons. Neither program has reached a championship game before, though that will change for one of them today.

These teams have already met this season, with the Tigers beating the Orono Spartans 13-12 on Oct. 3. Marshall’s defense has been stellar all season long, conceding more than 10 points just twice and never more than 14.

But after Marshall beat Totino-Grace 22-9 in the quarterfinals last week, Tigers senior linebacker and leading rusher Andrew Stelter said Orono was the toughest defensive assignment Marshall faced all season.

Orono, led in both passing and rushing yards by senior quarterback Griffin Mauer and averaging over 30 points a game, has the solid defense and balanced offense to test the Tigers.

— Cassidy Hettesheimer