When Eden Prairie’s Kal Lunde picked off his second pass in Thursday night’s game against Hopkins, the senior defensive back was determined to avoid a similar end to an interception return he had in the season opener. 

“I was trying not to get tackled on the 1-yard line like I did against (Totino-Grace),” Lunde said with a laugh after the Eagles’ 56-21 win over the Royals at Hopkins High School.

Two weeks ago, Lunde came up short of the end zone. This time, he would not be denied, crossing the goal line for a TD and pushing Eden Prairie’s lead to 56-7 with 20 seconds remaining in the second quarter. 

While Lunde’s pick-6 was the turnover that put points on the board, one could argue that it was his first interception of the game that had the most impact. 

Lunde, also a member of the Eagles varsity baseball team, snagged an errant pass by Hopkins senior quarterback Oscar Johnson-Dorothy in the end zone to end the Royals’ opening drive.

“They had some momentum there, so obviously it was a big play,” Eden Prairie coach Mike Grant said. 

Senior running back T.J. Conrad, who ran for 93 yards and a TD, said he and Lunde had decided during Eden Prairie's pregame stretch that this was the night they would be making an impact. 

“Before the game, he and I were talking to each other and we said, ‘Alright, this is going to be our game,’” Conrad said. 

Eagles senior running back J.D. Spielman ran for 98 yards and two touchdowns while junior defensive back Tommy Fuller returned an interception 42 yards for a TD and senior quarterback Jackson Randle hit junior tight end Clayton Witherspoon for a 36-yard TD connection in the victory. 

Senior running back Alec Hetherington scored a touchdown on his trademark short-yardage power-push and junior running back Hunter O’Bert ran for another on a slick 37-yard scamper for Eden Prairie.

After exploding for 41 points in the second quarter, the Eagles held a commanding lead, making it easy for Grant to sit nearly all of his starters for the second half.

It was an opportunity for the second-team players a chance to shine, and junior running back Rodney Cooper Jr. and senior running back Jamar Burns did. Cooper rattled off a beautiful 30-yard run while Burns showed great field awareness and a knack for finding holes in the Royals defense. 

Grant said the move had more to do with rewarding players for their efforts in practice than it did with resting his first team.

“It’s not even about resting the starters,” Grant said. “We’ve got all these other kids that work so hard, and to see them get out there and make some plays was fun to watch.”

Senior running back J.D. Spielman finished with 98 rushing yards and two touchdowns and senior defensive back Kal Lunde returned one of his two interceptions for a TD as Eden Prairie won in dominant fashion over Hopkins 56-21 Thursday night at Hopkins High School. 

The Eagles (3-0) scored 41 points in the second quarter and held out the majority of their starters in the second half. Senior running back T.J. Conrad rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown while running backs Alec Hetherington and Hunter O’Bert each had a rushing TD. 

Eden Prairie senior quarterback Jackson Randle tossed a 33-yard touchdown pass to junior tight end Clayton Witherspoon. Junior defensive back Tommy Fuller returned an interception 42 yards for another TD. 

Hopkins senior quarterback Oscar Johnson-Dorothy threw two touchdown passes, including one to junior receiver Malik Lofton that went for 80 yards. Junior running back Deyon Campbell hauled in the other on an 11-yard pass.

Senior defensive back Mannie Kugmeh had a 34-yard rushing TD for the Royals (1-2). 

Eden Prairie, ranked No. 1 in Class 6A in The Associated Press high school football poll, plays Maple Grove on Sept. 11, while Hopkins takes on Edina.

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