It may only have been two years ago, but to Lakeville North linebacker Zach Swedberg the Panthers’ defensive performance in their 28-7 victory over Burnsville on Friday was “just like the old days.”

Lakeville North throttled the Burnsville offense, forced five turnovers and sacked quarterback Andrew Hanson five times in an effort that closely resembled the Panthers’ vaunted defense of 2014.

“This is what our coach [Brian] Vossen has been calling the good old days,” said Swedberg, a second-year starter at middle linebacker.
“That was the kind of defense we didn’t have around here last year. This year, we’re stepping it up. We’re a lot faster, a lot more physical and a lot smarter. We’re better in all three phases.”

Vossen laughed at the reference.

“To them, it’s the good old days,” he said. “To us, the good old days is 2007. But throughout the summer and into the season I thought we had a very good defense and we had an opportunity to do some great things.”

A stout defense can be made to look even better when the offense is playing well. There’s no player in the metro having a better season than Lakeville North running back Wade Sullivan.

The 5-9, 179-pound tailback was remarkable for the third consecutive game, rushing for 174 yards and four touchdowns. Sullivan has more than 500 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns in three weeks.

Like most teams, Burnsville stacked its defense to stop Sullivan and it worked for a half. Lakeville North led just 7-0 on Sullivan’s 13-yard TD run. He was held to 49 yards on 13 carries before halftime.

Things changed on the first drive of the second half. Lakeville North went 82 yards in seven plays, all of them rushes by Sullivan, including a momentum-grabbing 53-yard run on the second play from scrimmage.
He finished off the drive with a 5-yard sweep for a touchdown for a 14-0 lead. Sullivan added scoring runs of 7 and 8 yards later in the half.

“Wade Sullivan, you get the ball in his hands and you know he’s going to make some plays,” Vossen said. “Tonight he did that, but our [offensive] line and [fullback] Reid Saarela blocking for him? What a great job by those guys.”

Jim Paulsen • 612-673-7737

Wade Sullivan rushed for 174 yards and four touchdowns – he’s scored 10 in the last two weeks – and the Lakeville North defense forced five turnovers as the Panthers downed Burnsville 28-7.

Lakeville North, ranked No. 2 in Class 6A, led just 7-0 at halftime but rode Sullivan to a game-changing 14-0 lead on the opening possession of the second half. The 5-foot-9 tailback carried the ball on all seven plays on the 82-yard drive, highlighted by a 53-yard scamper, and scored on a five-yard run. He added two more scores, on runs of seven and eight yards, both after Burnsville turnovers.

Burnsville, ranked No. 8 in Clas 6A, fell to 2-1.

Check back later for more on the game.

Key to the game: Leading just 7-0 at halftime, Lakeville North scored on its opening drive of the second half, taking a 14-0 lead and deflating any momentum Burnsville had. Wade Sullivan had 125 yards rushing and three touchdowns after halftime.

The quote: “Lakeville North is a very good team and Sullivan is a special player, but we’re just not very disciplined right now. We’re going to work on that this week.” — Burnsville coach Tyler Krebs

Worth noting: Burnsville’s Jake Shepley intercepted a pass in the final seconds of the first half, giving him four interceptions in the past two weeks. He also scored the Blaze’s only touchdown on a leaping 15-yard reception on fourth down late in the third quarter.

JIM PAULSEN