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Class 11A football playoffs first round overview

Garrick Hodge/MDN Des Lacs-Burlington and Velva each kick off their own Class 11A playoff game starting today.

The North Dakota Class A football playoffs get underway today with eight games across the state.

Here is a look at the first-round matchups.

No. 1 Hillsboro/Central Valley (8-0) vs. Westhope/Newburg/Glenburn (5-3)

At Central Valley High School, 2 p.m.

Notable win: HCV def. Ellendale/Edgeley/Kulm 48-14. WNG def. Bottineau 36-6.

Points for and against: HCV 331-38. WNG 186-179.

The Burros victory over defending state champions Ellendale/Edgeley/Kulm a couple weeks ago pushed them to the No. 1 overall seed. HCV is averaging 41.6 points per game.

WNG is back in the playoffs after missing last season when they were in Region 3. Prior to that, the Sioux had reached the postseason seven years in a row.

Carrington (7-1) vs. Oak Grove (6-2)

At Carrington High School, 3 p.m.

Notable win: Carrington def. WNG 37-14. Oak Grove def. Kindred 27-14.

Points for and against: Carrington 280-105. Oak Grove 213-127.

In a 2016 first round playoff rematch, Carrington’s lone loss this season was against still undefeated Langdon Area/Edmore/Munich, 31-0. The Cardinals rely mostly on their rushing attack with junior Drew Page racking up 855 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground this season.

Oak Grove can’t be taken lightly with its only losses this season coming from No. 1 HCV (30-6) and Ellendale/Edgeley/Kulm (28-10). The Grovers are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

No. 4 Dickinson Trinity (6-1) vs. Stanley (4-4)

At Biesiot Activities Center, 1 p.m.

Notable win: Dickinson Trinity def. Beulah 21-0. Stanley def. Kenmare/Bowbells/Burke Central 29-6.

Points for and against: Dickinson Trinity 230-17. Stanley 172-188.

With five shutouts, the 17 points given up by the Titans this season is the best among the playoff teams. Bowman County knocked them off 15-6 and Washburn picked up a safety – both those teams didn’t make the playoffs.

Stanley fell to the three Region 3 teams ahead of them in the standings – Velva, DLB and Ryan – as well as Beulah (40-0). They returned to the playoffs with senior quarterback Wyatt Hanson at the helm after four seasons of no success (5-31) in Class AA.

Des Lacs-

Burlington (7-1)

vs. Killdeer (6-2)

At Des Lacs High School, 2 p.m.

Notable win: DLB def. Bishop Ryan 14-7. Killdeer def. Hazen 35-0.

Points for and against: DLB 261-41. Killdeer 211-105.

A fourth-quarter rally in the rain on a touchdown run and throw by sophomore quarterback Dante Gunville helped DLB top Ryan in the 2016 state semifinal rematch. The Lakers have playmakers in the air with Joshua Knutson and Tyson Akers, as well as on the ground with bruising tailback Colton Bartuska.

Killdeer enters its eight-straight postseason appearance without really playing in a contested game all year. The Cowboys were shutout by Beulah (40-0) and Dickinson Trinity (33-0), while winning their other six games by 10 points or more with an average margin of victory of 29.8 points.

No. 2 Velva (8-0) vs. Hazen (4-4)

At Velva High School, 1:30 p.m.

Notable win: Velva def. DLB 18-7. Hazen def. Bowman County 21-19.

Points for and against: Velva 366-26. Hazen 137-179.

The Velva Aggies bolster the best point differential (+340) out of the 16 playoff teams and gave up half of those 26 points in a 42-13 rout of Ryan in the regular season finale to capture the Region 3 title.

The Velva defense has posted five shutouts and the offense has been rolling with senior quarterback Nicholas Effertz and his many offensive weapons – Elijah Hackman, Ethan Schepp, Gage Florence, Hunter Brabandt, Jon Thomas, etc.

Hazen took Velva to the limit two years ago in the first round of the playoffs, but lost 23-22. The Bison enter the playoffs with the worst point differential (-42) and zero wins or even points against teams that made the playoffs (0-3, outscored 108-0).

Beulah (7-1) vs. Bishop Ryan (6-2)

At Beulah High School, 1 p.m.

Notable win: Beulah def. Killdeer 40-0. Ryan def. Stanley 22-13.

Points for and against: Beulah 323-41. Ryan 248-105.

Getting shut out by Dickinson Trinity 21-0 has been the only rough spot for Beulah this season. The 2015 Class AA state champions have only lost four games over the last three seasons.

A diverse mix of running backs for the Miners has accumulated 2,727 yards (389.6 yards per game) and 34 touchdowns on the ground this season. Four senior tailbacks have over 400 yards: Mikey Morris (757 yards, 12 rushing touchdowns), Derek Ferebee (681, 5), Aaron Vallejo (458, 8) and Tyler Erickson (417, 4).

In the regular season finale, Ryan needed a nine-point win against Velva to claim the Region 3 title and just a win away from a home playoff game. Instead, a 42-13 defeat has them on the road.

Ryan’s strength is up front with their imposing linemen – Christopher Sowitch, Jacob Lizotte and Keegan Henjum – and they have playmakers beside them with junior quarterback Ben Bohl, senior running back Hayden Schall and senior receiver TJ Scheig. The Lions also have the luxury of utilizing senior kicker JJ Johannsen.

No. 3 Langdon Area/Edmore/Munich (8-0) vs. Kindred (4-4)

At Langdon Area High School, 2 p.m.

Notable win: LAEM def. Carrington 31-0. Kindred def. Enderlin/Maple Valley 28-0.

Points for and against: LAEM 379-44. Kindred 201-148.

Scoring the most points during the regular season in Class A, the LAEM Cardinals have quickly turned around a 1-7 overall record in the 2015 season into a state semifinal appearance last year and an undefeated campaign so far this year. Since 2000, the Cardinals have reached the Class A state championship twice and lost to Velva both times.

Kindred, back in Class A for the first time since 2008, lost in the Class AA state championship last season to Bismarck St. Mary’s. Junior Michael Hall rushed for 115 yards and three touchdowns last week in 49-16 win over Lisbon.

Ellendale/Edgeley/Kulm (7-1) vs. Harvey/Wells County (4-4)

At Edgeley High School, 2:30 p.m.

Notable win: EEK def. Oak Grove 28-10. HWC def. WNG 48-12.

Points for and against: EEK 279-130. HWC 158-144.

Surprisingly, the defending Class A state champion Thunder are one of five playoff teams that didn’t record a shutout this season – the other four teams being Ryan, Stanley, WNG and Carrington.

Even harder to believe is it wasn’t that long ago, starting before the co-ops happened in 2013, that the foundation for this EEK team posted winless season from 2011-14 and racked up a 37-game losing streak. Now, here they are chasing another state title.

It was a rough start to the season for HWC with three losses out of the gate to Velva, Carrington and LAEM. But, the Hornets recovered down the stretch to win four out of their last five games.

Last season in Week 2, HWC narrowly fell to EEK in a non-region game 30-28.

Alex Eisen covers Minot High School, Minot State athletics and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @AEisen13.

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