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Dassel-Cokato dominates Fairmont with explosive third quarter

By Kassondra Burtis, SportsEngine, 11/13/21, 3:00PM CST

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The Chargers beat the Cardinals with a 21-point third quarter in the Class 3A quarterfinals.


Dassel-Cokato running back Eli Gillman (1) turns upfield for a big gain in the Class 3A quarterfinal against Fairmont. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine


Fairmont quarterback Zach Jorgensen (11) is stopped short of the goal line on a third-down play in the second half. On the next play, Jorgensen was intercepted to set up a Dassel-Cokato touchdown. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

Saturday’s Class 3A quarterfinal matchup between Fairmont and Dassel-Cokato was poised to be a battle of run vs. pass, featuring two of the state’s top athletes.

Fairmont’s Eli Anderson ranked No. 4 in the state in receiving yards this season (1,109) and was tied for first with 16 receiving touchdowns. Dassel-Cokato’s Eli Gillman had a sixth-ranked 1,683 rushing yards and was second with 32 rushing touchdowns.

In the end, Gillman’s legs and the Chargers’ defense won out, with Dassel-Cokato (12-0) scoring the final 28 points of the game and earning a 41-13 victory.

Chargers coach Ryan Weinandt had faith in his team but knew the momentum could turn either way in the early going.

“The way [Fairmont] can score quickly is very, very scary,” Weinandt said. “We just didn’t want to give them the ball. We had a couple turnovers that slowed us down, but once we took care of that we were able to score on almost every drive. That’s what we had to do to keep their offense off the field.” 

The Chargers’ offense dominated in the second half, tallying four touchdowns. Not only did Gillman lead the Chargers with four touchdowns and over 250 rushing yards, he grabbed an interception, returning it deep into Cardinals territory.

“Eli is a great leader, he’s worked extremely hard, and is very selfless,” Weinandt said. “Even today when we needed him to play defense, he did. Wherever we need him we feel like he can play, and that’s a really good weapon for us to have.”

True to his coach’s word, Gillman passed along much of the credit to his teammates. 

“When the offensive linemen do their job well, it makes it easy for us running backs to get through the holes,” Gillman said. “They did their jobs and made our job look super easy.”

Aside from one previous loss this season, Fairmont (9-2) hadn’t given up more than 18 points in any of its other nine games, five times holding opponents to seven or fewer points. Utilizing their typical pass-first offense was the plan, but coach Mat Mahoney said the Chargers were prepared for it, which threw the Cardinals off their game plan. Several second-half penalties and some frustration led to an insurmountable deficit.

“I thought in the first half we did a really good job of slowing them down and creating turnovers,” Mahoney said. "Defensively, they were mixing up their coverages and forcing us to do things we don’t typically do.”

First Report

Dassel-Cokato used a 21-point third quarter to break a halftime tie and run their way past Fairmont 41-13 in the Class 3A Quarterfinal matchup on Saturday afternoon in Prior Lake.

Eli Gillman showed why he’s one of the state’s leading rushers, recording four touchdowns — including two for over 50 yards each — and over 250 rushing yards to lead the Chargers. Keyton Johnson tallied the Chargers’ other two touchdowns, both in the third quarter, to help the Chargers’ second-half dominance.

Fairmont started the game’s scoring less than three minutes into the game after a trademark Zach Jorgensen-to-Eli Anderson long pass set up the Cardinals’ Gavin Rodning for a 5-yard touchdown. The Cardinals’ other touchdown was scored on a fumble recovery by Gavin Junkermeier after the Chargers’ run-first offense opted for a passing attempt and quarterback Gregory Clark was sacked.

The Chargers, who recorded their ninth game of over 40 points on offense, move to 12-0 on the season. 

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