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GULL LAKE – In a game that felt more like a bizarre season-opener than a regional championship showdown, Constantine was the first team to find its mid-season form.
The Falcons scored 19 points in the second half, after a slow start to the game, to dispatch Michigan Center for a 33-14 win and claim the program’s first regional title since 2012. Constantine (9-1) will face the winner of Clinton (8-1) and Warren Michigan Collegiate (9-0) in next weekend’s state semifinals.
“At this point, I don’t care if there’s a four-week layoff or not, we’re just trying to live to play another day and that’s what we really accomplished today,” said Constantine head coach Shawn Griffith. “I’m very excited for the seniors, especially, to have the chance to come back out here and compete for a regional title and keep their seasons alive.
“My hat is off to Michigan Center. They are a well-coached team and they competed hard despite being a little shorthanded today.”
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Both teams sledded through some sloppy play to open the game, as a 57-day layoff was more than enough rust to bring offensive and defensive operations to a halt early on.
“I think you saw what that kind of time off can do to two football teams,” said Griffith. “We were both really scrambling there for a while just trying to figure things out and get in a rhythm. I thought we had a couple of big runs when we really needed them. Caden (Hetmansperger) got us into a couple of positive plays that put us in a position to score early in the game and we kind of got things rolling in the second half after we made a few adjustments.
“I’m really excited to get the win, but we all know that we’re going to have to be a lot sharper than that if we are going to move on next week and advance to the state finals.”
Sophomore tailback Brayden Clark stole the show for Constantine, rushing for 196 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries and added two critical second-half interceptions from his linebacker position on defense.
Ty Dumm added 128 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries, while Hetmansperger added 92 yards and one score on 12 carries, Davonte Conley added 31 yards on 10 carries and Lukas Hagenbuch added a 17-yard touchdown run.
“That was just Brayden Clark being Brayden Clark,” said Griffith. “He’s been doing that for us now for two years. He’s been making plays for us since he stepped on the field as a freshman and the guys believes in him. He’s done a great job for us and he made some big plays for us today.”
The turning point in the game came late in the first half, when Clark walked into the endzone from 3-yards out to give Constantine a 14-0 lead with only 26 seconds left to play in the half. Michigan Center couldn’t convert a deep pass attempt as time expired to end the half and had to kick off to the Falcons to start the third quarter.
Constantine drove 65 yards in 4:41 and capped off the drive with a 17-yard touchdown run by Hagenbuch to extend a 20-0 advantage and put Michigan Center in a bind.
“I definitely think that changed the complexion of the game,” said Griffith. “We ended the first half with a nice, long drive and then set the tempo for the second half with that drive to open up the third quarter.
“Our guys did a great job of running the clock, picking up positive yardage on first and second down and keeping drives alive. We made a few adjustments at halftime to try and spring some guys loose and we had a few successful plays to get things rolling. Michigan Center never quit though, so we really had to grind it out and finish the game.”
Carson Platz registered five tackles to lead the Constantine defense, while Hagenbuch added three stops and Conley and Jacobs each added two.
Michigan Center senior quarterback Joe Olkowski finished 15-of-30 passing for 211 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, while junior tailback Kaydin Hiland added 54 yards rushing on seven attempts and caught five passes for 40 yards and one touchdown.
Senior wideout Matt Brown hauled in four receptions for 73 yards, while Mitchell Corwin added a 51-yard reception and Daylen Hinkle caught two passes for 27 yards and added one interception on defense.
“It’s frustrating as a coach because I feel like we left a lot of plays out there today, but I also realize we haven’t played a game in almost two months and this wasn’t going to be the cleanest operation out of the gate,” said Michigan Center head coach Troy Allen. “I was really proud of how our kids continued to fight in the second half even when the scoreboard was against us. We kept fighting and playing with great effort and that’s all I can really ask of them during this crazy season that we’ve had.”
The loss in the regional brings a sour ending to an otherwise historic season for the Cardinals, who claimed the program’s first district championship back on Nov. 13, 2020. The Cardinals were without several key players Saturday due to opt-outs during the season’s suspension in November and positive COVID-19 tests earlier this week.
“It’s tough for me because I am happy we got a chance to get back out here and compete, but I also know this isn’t the same team that I had back in November when we beat Jonesville,” said Allen. “We were missing a few key players, including some senior leaders for us, so I would have liked to see what this group could have done back in November if we had our whole team with us.
“Today’s game felt kind of like a season-opener for us and I thought you saw some of that with the lack of sharpness in some things we were doing. We had some mental mistakes and miscues that we probably wouldn’t have had to worry about if we hadn’t been inactive for two months. I guess the silver lining is that we all got an extra three weeks to practice and compete together and I wouldn’t have traded that opportunity for anything.”
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Constantine finds its stride to dispatch Michigan Center, claim first regional title since 2012 - MLive.com
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