By CHRIS BROOKS, photos by CHAR STONE
BOLIVAR — To say the last second touchdown scored by Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen against Bolivar-Richburg earlier in the season left a sour taste with the Wolverines, would be a massive understatement.
Earlier in the season, Cal-Mum won on a buzzer-beater (story here).
The possibility of Bolivar-Richburg seeking the ultimate form of redemption in the playoffs became an instant reality when the brackets were officially released last weekend, as the No. 2 seeds hosted that same third-seeded squad for the final time this season at Dunsmore-Latimer Field on Friday.
This time around, the Wolverines took care of business on their own terms.
Behind 329 total yards of offense and a humongous night on the ground from Tavyn MacDonell, there was simply no stopping the Wolverines on their path towards redemption, as they redeemed it in full with a 28-0 halftime lead over Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen that they never looked back on, officially cruising into the 8-Man Finals next weekend with a 40-15 win.
The damage was done right in the opening half of play by the Wolverines (6-2), as they set the bar on their opposition right away with their run game, led by MacDonell, who scored three of the team’s four first half touchdowns, including a massive 56-yard run in the second quarter to push the team’s lead to 22-0.
MacDonell finished with 16 rushes for 134 yards and four total scores on the ground to pave the attack for the Wolverines.
The momentum would lie with Bolivar-Richburg and their defense the remainder of the game, as they helped solidify their lead behind three big turnovers — two of them off interceptions by Zach Mitchell and Trey Buchholz, who also scored a 41-yard touchdown from the backfield in the third quarter to further distance their lead against Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen.
Leading the defense for the hosts in black and red was Caden Allen, who posted 12 team-leading tackles. Mitchell followed behind with eight tackles of his own, while Charlie Militello had 4.5 tackles of his own.
Bolivar-Richburg will now begin preparations for the 8-Man Finals next Friday night up north, where they will meet top-seeded and defending 8-Man State Champion Pembroke to decide it all, in a 7 p.m. kickoff at Pittsford-Sutherland.
Cal-Mum/Byron-Bergen 0 0 7 8 – 15
Bolivar-Richburg 16 12 6 6 – 40
Scoring Summary
1st
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 7-yard run, 2-pts good (8-0 B-R)
B-R – Caden Allen 4-yard run, 2-pts good (16-0 B-R)
2nd
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 56-yard run, 2-pts failed (22-0 B-R)
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 3-yard run, 2-pts failed (28-0 B-R)
3rd
C-M/B-B – Jeremiah Romero 7-yard run, PAT good (28-7 B-R)
B-R – Trey Buchholz 41-yard run, 2-pts failed (34-7 B-R)
4th
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 9-yard run, 2-pts failed (40-7 B-R)
C-M/B-B – Malachi Smith 68-yard run, 2-pts good (40-15 B-R)
CHAR STONE PHOTOS
