Sixth-rated Aplington-Parkersburg will meet a very familiar opponent tonight in its first-round playoff game, when Eagle Grove makes the trip to Ed Thomas Field. A-P won last year’s meeting 48-27 on a night when wind gusts topped 40 miles per hour, and temperatures dropped into the 30s.
Aplington-Parkersburg coach Alex Pollock says the weather conditions were “ridiculous” and they had to make the best of it. He says both teams are ground oriented, so the cold will impact them both the same. He says the team’s loss to West Marshall early in the season turned out to be one of the team’s most important games along with the St. Ansgar game, where they had to come back. He says they made some changes that have worked well.
Eagle Grove finished the regular season at 5-4, thanks to a Week 9 victory over South Hamilton that knocked the Hawks out of the playoffs and pushed the Eagles in. Head coach Kelly Williamson says the ground game has been strong, but the aerial attack has sputtered at times. He says they continue to work on that and trying to find their way offensively.
Williamson is an A-P alumnus and played for Ed Thomas during his time with the Falcons, but says he and his players have not forgotten that tonight’s road trip carries a purpose. He says going back is a special thing, but he says it is a business trip and they are going there to try and win a football game.
By Austin Draude, KLMJ, Hampton