Badgers, Jaguars blast to state football championships

Bennington High fans held up lights to signal the Badgers were finishing a Class B state playoff victory over McCook on Oct. 29. The eventual state champions won four playoff games by an average of 32 points.

R.B. Headley/McCook Gazette

LINCOLN, Neb — Bennington running back Dylan Mostek broke the Nebraska 11-man single-season rushing record while rolling up 218 yards in a 42-14 win over Aurora in the Class B championship.

Mostek carried the ball 20 times and finished with four touchdowns to cap an undefeated 13-0 season.

Aurora finishes as a Class B state runner-up for the second straight season. The Huskies went 10-3 this season.

Aurora junior Carlos Collazo rushed for a game-high 272 yards on 36 carries. Carsen Staehr had six catches for the Huskies.

Aurora committed three turnovers in the game, including a pair of interceptions in the red zone.

The McCook Bison played both teams this season, including a Class B state playoff opener at Bennington October 29.

Howells-Dodge Jaguars finish unbeaten run to D-1 title

Cross County made history Monday, appearing in the Class D1 state championship game for the first time in program history, but it didn’t end the way they would have hoped.

Howells-Dodge looked the part Monday, and a lot of that was thanks to Levi Belina. In the second quarter, he broke loose for a 44-yard touchdown run to put the Jaguars up 20-0 at the half.

Cross County did see a glimmer of hope when Shayden Lundstrum connected with Hayden Hild for a 55-yard pass, which helped set up Lundstrum’s TD pass to Izaac Dickey.

However, Carter Seim was held to just 97 yards rushing and Howells-Dodge dominated in a 42-12 win to claim the Class D1 championship.

Both teams went through Gazette-area teams, as H-D (13-0) beat Dundy County-Stratton in the quarterfinals.

Cross County (11-2) spoiled Hitchcock County’s historic state semifinal at Trenton.