Northwest Iowa — Boyden Hull Rock Valley and Spencer will meet in the round of 16 in the 3A football playoffs on Friday night. It’s a rematch of the regular season meeting won by the Nighthawks 22-7 on October 2nd. The regular season game was also hosted by the Tigers.
Both teams are 6-2 coming into Fridays game. A three way tie for the district title with the Tigers, Nighthawks and Sergeant Bluff Luton resulted in a coin toss won by Spencer should the two teams meet in the playoffs.
Spencer advanced with a 42-35 home win last Friday over Humboldt. John Nissen scored on a one-yard run with 49 seconds left in the fourth quarter to rally the Tigers to the win. The Tigers took over at their own 45-yard line and drove 55 yards in nine plays for the winning score.
Boyden Hull Rock Valley moved into the round of 16 with a 42-0 home win over Storm Lake. The Nighthawks used 5 takeaways and powerful running game to shutout the Tornadoes. Kody Noble keyed the running game. Behind great blocking Noble scored three times in the second quarter from 10, 2, and 8 yards out to give BHRV a 28-0 lead heading into halftime.
Nighthawks Head Coach Corey Brandt on a second rematch in this round of the playoffs.
On defense responsibility football is a priority against Spencer’s flex bone offense.
Brandt feels it will take a full 48 minutes of football to keep moving on in the playoffs.
Spencer Head Coach Jim Tighe says the biggest strength of the Nighthawks is their balance.
The Tigers regular season loss to BHRV came with some lessons.
Tighe feels the strength of his team is everyone coming together for a common goal.
We’ll bring you the broadcast on KIWA FM 105.3. Pregame with Jon and Justin Hellinga begins at 6:30 from Spencer. Opening kickoff at 7:00. Streaming at www.kiwaradio.com.
