Totino-Grace did it again.

The unseeded and eighth-ranked Eagles scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to erase a 13-point deficit and held on to shock third-seeded and third-ranked Mounds View in the Class 6A quarterfinals Thursday at Maple Grove High School. 

Down 21-13 Mounds View junior receiver Mitch Vaske made a diving catch for a 13-yard touchdown from the arm of senior quarterback Joe Fredrickson to come within two points with 17.9 seconds remaining, but the Mustangs’ 2-point conversion failed and Totino-Grace escaped with the victory. 

“The coaches tell us our opponents are just like big trees,” Totino-Grace senior quarterback Lance Benick said. “You just have to keep chopping at them. We did that all the way through the fourth quarter - just never let up and out powered them.” 

It’s the second-consecutive season the Eagles advanced to the Class 6A state semifinals after denying a 2-point conversion late in the fourth quarter. Last season, Totino-Grace stopped Osseo’s attempt with 1:05 remaining to win 34-33.

“There wasn’t an inch of doubt we were going to come out with this victory,” said Eagles’ senior safety Ben Mezzenga. “We really proved we were a brotherhood tonight. It was a great win.” 

Totino-Grace took a 21-13 lead with 1:53 left on the clock on 9-yard touchdown by senior running back Kez Flomo. Mounds View head coach Jim Galvin said he called for his defense to intentionally allow Flomo to score in order to give his offense one shot at scoring a touchdown and pulling off a 2-point conversion to tie the game - a risk that almost paid off.

“There wasn’t anything else we could do,” Galvin said. “They could have run all the time off the clock. That was our only chance.”

After Mounds View controlled the first three quarters, holding Totino-Grace to just 125 total yards, Totino-Grace turned it around in the fourth.

The Eagles got on the board with a 14-play drive capped by a 7-yard Flomo touchdown slicing their deficit to 13-7 with 8:39 remaining. Then, Totino-Grace forced Mounds View to punt after a three-and-out. Just over a minute later, Benick ran in a 7-yard touchdown to make it 14-13, giving the Eagles’ the lead for good.

Totino-Grace will face unseeded Lakeville North, who upset No. 2-ranked Rosemount, in the semifinals. 

Totino-Grace scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to erase a 13-point deficit and held on to shock Mounds View in the Class 6A quarterfinals Thursday at Maple Grove High School. 

Down 21-13 Mounds View scored a touchdown to come within two points with 17.9 seconds remaining, but the Mustangs’ 2-point conversion failed and Totino-Grace escaped with the 21-19 victory.