HARTFORD — Marmaton Valley High’s Brayden Lawson rushed for 245 yards and six touchdowns and threw for another score Friday as the Wildcats fended off a pesky Hartford squad, 52-46.
“He’s a great passer, but he’s also a tank to tackle,” Wildcat head coach Max Mickunas said of his sophomore quarterback.
The Wildcats overcame struggles late in the first half that allowed Hartford to rebound from a 26-8 deficit and tie the score at intermission.
“They have a quarterback who’s super elusive,” Mickunas said. “He scrambled around and made some big plays. We threw an interception, and they were able to crawl back into the game.”
Marmaton Valley made some key adjustments from there.
“We really leaned on Brayden,” Mickunas said, noting Lawson racked up 38 carries. “I don’t know if he’s ever run that many times in junior high, but that’s the most I’ve ever run a quarterback.”
Lawson completed 7 of 11 passes for 155 yards and another score.
Fellow sophomore Jaedon Granere had four receptions for 73 yards and 33 yards on six carries, to go with two touchdowns, one on the ground and the other through the air. Senior Dylan Drake had two receptions for 49 yards. Tyler Lord had three carries for eight yards.
Defensively, Granere had a team-high nine tackles, including two sacks. Evanm Kent added seven stops, including one behind the line of scrimmage. Lord and freshman Brevyn Campbell each had five tackles.
The victory puts Marmaton Valley (3-2) at 2-0 in district play, which qualifies the Wildcats for the playoffs.
“We’re happy, but not satisfied,” Mickunas said, noting the Wildcats end the regular season with a brutal three-game gauntlet, starting Friday at home against Crest.
“They start eight seniors and have 11 seniors total,” Mickunas said. “We know they’re going to be a tough matchup for us. We just want to leave it all out on the field.”
Another doozy follows with a trip to Lebo the following week before MV wraps up the regular season at home against perennial power St. Paul.
“We’re in the playoffs,” Mickunas said. “We just want to improve our seeding.”
