Edina had one last drive Oct. 10 in its effort to pull out a high school football win over visiting Stillwater at Kuhlman Field.
The Hornets had the ball in Stillwater territory with less than three minutes left in the second half. Mason West, the Hornets’ record-setting junior quarterback, was working the two-minute drill to perfection, but the Hornets’ drive stalled when they failed to convert on fourth down and seven.
But wait. Stillwater was called for a face mask personal foul and the Hornets had new life inside Stillwater’s 10 yard line. That gave West a chance to win the game and he came through on cue with a perfect 8-yard touchdown pass to Jabari Strader in the northwest corner of the end zone.
One Edina fan described the play as “great throw and an even better catch.”
The West to Strader touchdown pass put Edina ahead 19-16 and that was the final score.
After the game West and Strader talked about the winning score, which came with 1:50 showing on the clock.
“I had a couple of options on the play,”West said. “I saw Jabari in the corner and he was open.”
“That pass could have gone to any one of our playmakers,” Strader said. “I caught the ball and looked down. One of my feet was inbounds.”
As he ran out of the end zone, Strader saw that he was on the track at Kuhlman Field, so instinctively, he took off running a sort of victory lap in front of Edina’s student section.
The victory lap was not planned or intended. It just happened. “It was fun,” Strader said.
It was the third touchdown of the game for Strader - all on passes from West. In addition to the 8-yard play at the end, the other scoring plays covered 40 and 33 yards.
Strader’s total output for the night was 106 yards on six catches.
West’s numbers included 216 yards on 16 of 25 with three touchdowns and one interception. His quarterback rating for the game was 114.3.
Four other receivers caught passes for Edina. Meyer Swinney had six for 52 yards. Tight end Jack Bock caught one for 22 yards. Running back Chase Bjorgaard had two for 22 yards. Sammy Stephenson had one reception for 14 yards.
Strader credited West for his leadership throughout the game. “Mason is a great quarterback and a great person,” Strader said.
In most games this season, Swinney has been Edina’s leading receiver. However, both Strader and Trillion Sorrell have had lead roles in games.
“Meyer had a couple of great catches tonight,” West said. “He is a good leader.”
Edina head coach Jason Potts, whose team improved to 5-2 overall with the win over Stillwater, said, “Mason was scrambling [on the winning pass play]. We were looking for Jabari at the goal line, but he wasn’t open there and headed for the corner. He made the catch look effortless. We had put the play in during practice this week. It was fun to see it work in the game.”
Potts praised Stillwater for a well-played game. “I have always been impressed by their program,” he said. “Their quarterback threw the ball well and their kicker, Landon Huber, made three field goals. I am proud of our defense. When Stillwater drove, we held them to field goals.”
Edina had to look to other receivers when Stillwater opted to double team Swinney the entire game. “Stillwater held us to our lowest points and yardage this season,” coach Potts said. The Hornets had the 216 passing yards, but made only 54 yards on the ground with Bjorgaard accounting for all but one of those yards on 17 carries.
Potts has been pleased with Edina’s offensive line play all season. The starters are Gage Holmberg at left tackle, Stephen Bunce at left guard, captain Ryan Zentner at center, Charlie Twistol at right guard and Erik Stanchfield at right tackle. Bock is the tight end.
“Ryan Zentner is back after an injury and was in for some snaps [against Stillwater],” coach Potts noted. “Junior Tyson Williams filled in for Ryan and has played well. Playing the center position is challenging.”
Edina usually runs for a shot-gun formation, so “snaps have to be fast and accurate, then the center has to get his hands on a defensive lineman,” Potts said.
Defensively, the Hornets have done some good work this season - holding Stillwater to one touchdown and Eden Prairie to two touchdowns - for a couple of key wins.
As this edition of the Sun Current was arriving at area homes and news outlets, Edina was playing its final regular-season game Wednesday, Oct. 16, at Hopkins. The Royals are 3-4 this season and were coming off a 55-6 loss Oct. 10 at Wayzata.
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