Sec 8 9-player FB Stephen-Argyle at Win-E-Mac

Erskine, MN — The Win-E-Mac Patriots are moving on to the Section 8 9-Player Semifinals after a dominant 50-0 victory over the Stephen-Argyle Storm on Tuesday night.

The Patriots wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. Starting their opening drive at their own 35-yard line, Win-E-Mac marched down the field and capped the possession with a 6-yard touchdown run by Jayden Haugen, his 14th rushing touchdown of the season.

Stephen-Argyle’s opening possession quickly stalled. Facing a fourth-and-short at their own 17-yard line, the Storm came up empty when their running back lost his footing in the backfield and was stopped for a four-yard loss, turning the ball over on downs. The Patriots immediately capitalised on the excellent field position. Starting at the Storm 13-yard line, Win-E-Mac drove to the 1-yard line, where quarterback Nathaniel Spry powered across the goal line on a quarterback sneak to make it 16-0.

The Storm’s next possession ended in similar fashion. Facing another fourth-down situation on their own side of the field at the 44-yard line, Stephen-Argyle was unable to convert and again turned the ball over on downs. Starting at the Storm 44, the Patriots put together another methodical drive, moving the ball to the 1-yard line before Spry scored his second rushing touchdown of the night on yet another quarterback sneak. After a successful two-point conversion, Win-E-Mac held a commanding 24-0 advantage.

Neither team would find the end zone again before halftime, sending the Patriots into the break with a 24-0 lead.

The offensive struggles continued for Stephen-Argyle in the second half. The Storm turned the ball over on downs two more times, lost a pair of fumbles, and managed just one punt possession as the Patriots’ defense continued to control the game.

Meanwhile, the Win-E-Mac ground attack never slowed down. The Patriots scored on four of their five second-half possessions, with Austin Langseth finding the end zone twice. Haugen added his second touchdown of the night with a 57-yard sprint to the end zone, while Alex Molina capped the scoring with a 97-yard touchdown run after the outcome had already been decided.

The victory serves as a measure of redemption for the Patriots, who were eliminated by Stephen-Argyle in the same playoff round one year ago. Win-E-Mac improves to 7-2 on the season and will travel to Hallock on Saturday for a Section 8 9-Player semifinal showdown against Kittson County Central.

For Stephen-Argyle, the season comes to an end with a 3-6 record. The loss also snaps the Storm’s streak of three consecutive Section Championship Game appearances.