CAMDENTON - The Helias Crusaders prepared all week for the power-I running game of the Camdenton Lakers.
They knew what was coming.
The Lakers ran the ball 55 times for 291 yards Friday night in a 57-35 victory against the Crusaders in the semifinals of the Class 4 District 5 Tournament.
"With our struggles stopping the run all year, I figured if they got the lead, they would try to milk the clock," Helias coach Chris Hentges said. "I figured they would want to see if we could stop it.
"At times, we were able to slow it down. But they were able to churn out first down after first down getting four or five yards a play and that made a big difference in the game."
With the win, top-seeded Camdenton (10-1) will host second-seeded Borgia (10-1) in the district title game next Friday night.
Through their first 10 games, the Lakers had thrown 342 passes and run the ball 189 times. But they flipped that ratio against the Crusaders, throwing only 20 times to their 55 rushing attempts.
Helias got off to a good start as Garrett Schnieders intercepted a pass on the first play from scrimmage. Seven plays later, Jacob Weaver scored on an 8-yard run and Vito Calvaruso's first of five extra points gave the Crusaders a 7-0 lead.
Camdenton answered with a 12-play, 76-yard drive. Eli Griffin capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. The PAT kick failed and Helias led 7-6.
Helias started its next drive with a 49-yard pass from Weaver to Adam Wilbers. Four plays later, Weaver scored from 7 yards out and it was 14-6 in favor of the Crusaders.
The scoring slowed as the teams exchanged punts. Camdenton tied the game on its first drive of the second quarter, going 43 yards in eight plays. The touchdown came on a 1-yard plunge by quarterback Paxton Delaurent, with Lathan Wise running for a 2-point conversion.
Helias threw an interception on its first play on its next drive and the Lakers took over at the Crusader 24. Two plays later, Griffin scored on a 3-yard run. The PAT kick failed and Camdenton led 20-14.
An interception halted Helias' next drive after just two plays. The Lakers needed three plays to get back in the end zone, which came on a 30-yard run by Griffin. Delaurent then ran for the 2-point conversion to make it 28-14.
Helias turned the ball over on downs on its next drive, dropping a fourth-down pass that would have resulted in a first down. Camdenton, which took over at its own 42, got to midfield before a snap sailed over Delaurent's head. The ball bounced down the field and Delaurent tried to kick it out of bounds, only to have the ball keep going toward the Helias end zone.
Michael Stroesser of the Crusaders fell on the ball at the Laker 4. Two plays later, Weaver connected with Jason Binkley for an 8-yard touchdown and Helias trailed 28-21 with 1:41 to go before halftime.
The Lakers looked like they were just going to run out the clock before a third-down run got the ball out to the 38 with :03 remaining. With the Crusaders having extra defenders deep, Delaurent then threw a pass to Wise, who caught it at about the Crusader 35. He broke one tackle, then used a block around the 5 to make it into the end zone as time expired. Luke Galbreath booted the PAT to improbably extend Camdenton's lead to 35-21 at the half.
"That was a back-breaker," Hentges said. "We just didn't make a play there, there's not much else to say."
Helias got the ball to start the second half and needed just five plays to find the end zone. On a third-and-10 play, Weaver scrambled away from pressure and lofted a pass toward Zach Woehr down the left side. Woehr came back to catch the ball at the Camdenton 5, then fought his way to the end zone to make the score 35-28.
Camdenton then put together a 12-play, 74-yard drive that ate more than seven minutes off the clock. The final 11 plays were runs, including a 3-yard touchdown run by Gabe Kurtz. The kick failed and it was 41-28.
Helias was forced to punt after three plays on its next series. The snap on the punt attempt sailed over Carson Stieferman's head and out of the end zone for a safety to make it 43-28.
After the ensuing free kick, Camdenton went 61 yards on 13 plays for a touchdown. The score came on a 3-yard run by Andrew Butts and the kick increased the Lakers' lead to 50-28.
"They really shortened it in the second half," Hentges said. "They just churned it, churned it and churned it until they got a touchdown.
"Down three scores like that and having to play catch-up, it was tough to do."
A 9-yard run by Butts with 6:37 remaining in the game made it 57-28.
Helias got its final touchdown on the next play from scrimmage as Weaver connected with Binkley for a 73-yard touchdown. Calvaruso's PAT made it 57-35.
The 35 points are the most Camdenton, ranked No. 8 in Class 4, has allowed this season.
Griffin finished with 112 rushing yards on 21 carries for the Lakers. Delaurent was 13-of-20 passing.
Weaver had a team-high 45 yards rushing on 11 carries. He was 11-of-23 passing for 268 yards.
Helias ends its season at 4-7.