The 2019 season is proving to be wide open in class 11A, and the Dell Rapids Quarriers are showing everyone they are one of the top teams in the class. With wins over Lennox, Mitchell, and Madison this season, the Quarriers picked up another road win on Friday, September 27th. Dell Rapids defeated Tri-Valley 35-6 for their fifth win of the season.
The Quarriers took the lead late in the first quarter and never looked back. Logan Stone put Dell Rapids on the board with an eight-yard touchdown run with 3:41 to play in the quarter. Aiden Boechler made the extra point for a 7-0 lead. Coby Maeschen scored again for Dell Rapids with 8:40 to go in the second quarter on a five-yard run, and Boechler made the extra point for a 14-0 Quarrier lead. Tri-Valley took advantage of a couple of penalties in their only drive that resulted in a touchdown. Mason Mathieau scored with 4:59 to play in the half, but the two-point conversion was no good. Dell Rapids led 14-6. After a fourth down stop late in the quarter, the Quarrier offense drove down the field in about a minute’s time to score right before halftime. Collin Rentz connected with Logan Ellingson on a 10-yard touchdown pass with :33 to go, and Boechler again made the extra point for a 21-6 halftime lead.
The Dell Rapids defense continued to keep the Mustang offense out of the endzone in the second half, while the offense scored two more times in the third quarter. Maeschen scored both of the touchdowns in the third quarter on one-yard carries. The first touchdown came with 4:08 to play in the third quarter. The second touchdown came after Maeschen intercepted a Mustang pass and returned it to the one-yard line. Boechler made both extra points.
Dell Rapids held Tri-Valley to just 119 yards of total offense. The Quarriers had 314 yards of offense, 172 passing yards and 142 rushing yards. Collin Rentz was 7-10 passing for 136 yards and a touchdown. Austin Henry finished 3-9 passing for 36 yards. Maeschen had three catches for 86 yards. Ellingson had five catches for 66 yards and a touchdown, and Tyler Wood had two catches for 20 yards. Stone tallied 42 yards and a touchdown on seven carries. Maeschen had five carries for 15 yards and three touchdowns. Wood also had 12 rushing yards. Trevon Cross had a 32 yards run, and Landon Ruesink had a 19-yard run.
Brayden Gee led the defense with nine tackles and a sack. Thane Hilmoe, Carter Rentz, and Maeschen (also had an interception) all had eight tackles in the game. Cross finished with seven tackles, and Ian Hackett finished with six tackles. Drew VanRegenmorter finished with four tackles and a sack.
Dell Rapids (5-0) will host Dakota Valley for homecoming on Friday, October 4th. The game can be seen on Big Sioux Media.