Woodbury has found much success in the second half this season.

It did so again Friday, putting up 14 points in the final two quarters and made a defensive stand with 3 seconds left to beat Eagan 21-20 in a Class 6A football playoff.

Eagan’s Gage Halvorson caught a 12-yard reception from Parker West with 3 seconds left to get the Wildcats within one. West was stopped just shy of the goal line on the 2-point try and the Royals could exhale.

A 18-yard touchdown reception by Woodbury’s Nolan Freymiller capped a 10-play, 78-yard drive midway through the fourth quarter for the winning points and the second-seeded Royals averted an upset by the seventh-seeded Wildcats.

Shawn Rekowski caught a 38-yard pass late in the third quarter as Woodbury (7-2) tied the game 14-all. Woodbury has outscored its opponents 138-75 in the second half.

The Royals next get No. 6 seed Moorhead, which wears orange and black, on Halloween. The Spuds upset No. 3 Blaine 38-21. Moorhead jumped out to a 21-0 second quarter lead and hung on to beat Woodbury 34-27 in Week 2.

Chris Brandt and West had long first-half touchdown runs, Charlie Heinlein and Grady Recer had interceptions and Harrison Brandt had two sacks for the Wildcats (2-7).

Mark Mathis broke a tackle and scored from 23 yards out less than three minutes into the game for a 6-0 Woodbury lead, capping a 10-play drive in which Eagan provided little resistance.

Take away a shutout loss at Forest Lake and the Royals entered averaging almost 28 points per game.

But the Royals did not score on their next four drives, including a receiver dropping a fourth-down pass and a Wildcat interception by Heinlein after the ball went off the helmet of a Woodbury receiver.

Brandt scored on a 59-yard run on Eagan’s third offensive play, and West darted 56 yards to the end zone on the first play of the second quarter.

Related Articles

Football: East Ridge holds on to beat Andover in Class 6A playoffs

State tennis: Hill-Murray tandem wins doubles title

State soccer roundup: Simley reaches Class 2A semis, Central falls to Edina

Boys soccer: Maple Grove beats Eagan in two overtimes in Class 3A quarterfinal

Girls soccer: Stella Triplett sends Eagan back to Class 3A semifinals