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After quiet first half, Osseo slugs its way to victory over Totino-Grace

By Luke Hanlon, SportsEngine, 10/23/20, 8:45PM CDT

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Tied 7-7 at halftime, the Orioles and Eagles combined for six touchdowns in the second half — four of which came in the final quarter.

Osseo receiver Micheal Henderson, left, celebrates his reception that set up a second-half touchdown with teammate KK Toten. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

Osseo receiver Micheal Henderson, left, celebrates his reception that set up a second-half touchdown with teammate KK Toten. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

Osseo linebacker Owen Dukowitz returns a second-quarter interception for a touchdown. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

Osseo linebacker Owen Dukowitz returns a second-quarter interception for a touchdown. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

In any sport, you learn the most about teams and their top players when they’re faced with adversity. How do they respond after mistakes? What are they capable of when their back is against the wall? 

Kenneth McKenzie of Osseo provided a resounding answer to those two questions in the Orioles’ 29-25 defeat of Totino-Grace at Osseo High School on Friday night. 

Trailing 25-22 in the fourth quarter, faced with a fourth-and-8 in its own territory, Osseo coach Ryan Stockhaus dialed up a risky play to try and save the game: a pass from a running back. 

“It kind of played into what we were doing the past couple weeks — very run heavy. It can be looked at as boring and methodical at times, but really we’re setting a lot of things up, setting up play-action, setting up plays like that,” he said. “We practiced it all week, we believed we were going to have to use it at some point. McKenzie is our backup quarterback — we know he can throw the rock.” 

McKenzie certainly can throw, as his only pass attempt of the season connected for 30 yards to Alex Theisen to keep Osseo’s chances alive. The Orioles’ starting quarterback, Wyatt Doubler, followed that with a nice pass of his own — a 31-yard completion to Micheal Henderson to set up the game-winning TD by TJ Clay.

First Report

Despite playing on its home field, Osseo came away with a dramatic 29-25 road win over Metro North subdistrict foe Totino-Grace on Friday night. 

The game seemed like it was going to be a defensive stalemate early, as the teams went into halftime tied 7-7. Both offenses came alive in the second half, however, as there were just three drives that didn’t result in touchdowns in the final 24 minutes. In total, six TDs were scored in the second half — four in just the fourth quarter.

The Orioles (2-1, 2-1) got an interception from Owen Dukowitz in the first half, who ran in for a 35-yard touchdown, and then a touchdown catch from Micheal Henderson and two TD runs from TJ Clay, including the game-winner. 

The final TD drive was set up with two big passing plays. The first was a 30-yard completion from running back Kenneth McKenzie to Alex Theisen on a fourth-and-8. Then, Wyatt Doubler connected with Henderson for 31 yards to set up Clay’s 2-yard TD run. 

Hunter Karlson did all of the scoring for the Eagles (1-2, 1-2), recording four touchdowns runs. He finished with a game-high 186 rushing yards and had 25 receiving yards.

Prior to Friday’s start, the matchup had been moved from the campus of Totino-Grace to Osseo due to poor field conditions.

Sam Fretheim (9) of Totino-Grace leads a group of Osseo defenders on his way to a big gain on a short pass in the second half. The play set up an Eagles touchdown. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

Sam Fretheim (9) of Totino-Grace leads a group of Osseo defenders on his way to a big gain on a short pass in the second half. The play set up an Eagles touchdown. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

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