THOMPSON, N.D.-At halftime, the adjustment for Thompson was very simple, very basic.
The Tommies didn't change any defensive schemes. "We just woke up and decided to start hitting,'' Thompson defensive lineman Adam Ackerman said. The first half, he said, "wasn't up to Thompson standards."
Thompson turned a close 16-14 halftime lead into a second-half route in the second round of the North Dakota 9-man high school football playoffs Saturday. Thompson outscored LaMoure/Litchville-Marion 32-0 in the final two quarters to claim a 48-14 victory.
The game through the first 24 minutes didn't look like a finish with running clock.
The Loboes didn't complete a pass in the game; they attempted only three. But the running of Shay Ness kept them in the game in the opening two quarters.
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Ness finished with 204 yards on the ground, including 25- and 70-yard touchdown runs in the opening two quarters.
The senior gained 138 yards in the first half. But Ness was less effective in the second half as the Tommies swarmed him at the line and gang tackled.
"We didn't make a lot of adjustments at halftime," Thompson coach Brady Schwab said. "I thought we played more physical-a little lower, a little faster-in the second half."
Marcus Hughes had 21 tackles and Nick Reck 12 to lead the Thompson defense.
"We didn't get the stops we needed in the second half,'' L-M-M coach Andy DelaBarre said. "Their whole defensive front took over. They fought off our blockers and made plays.
"We had to control the clock. We didn't want to get into a shootout."
But, offensively, the Tommies made big plays. Five of their six touchdowns covered more than 20 yards. "We're not looking for the home-run plays,'' Thompson quarterback Cadyn Schwabe said. "We just read the defense and take what's there."
Runs of 23 yards by Schwabe and 4 yards by Reck gave the Tommies a 16-6 lead after one quarter.
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In the third quarter, Thompson scored twice on 2- and 4-play drives. Schwabe ran 44 yards for the first touchdown in the third quarter and 23 yards for another. Then the senior went to the air, connecting with Hughes for 25- and 27-yard TD passes in the final quarter.
Reck finished with 186 yards rushing and Schwabe with 168 while passing for 76.
The big-play touchdowns "is being athletic,'' Schwab said. "You get people open and in 9-man, you can run a log way with good athletes."
Thompson improved to 9-0, while LaMoure-L-M closed at 5-5.
