Photo by Jake McNeill: Marshall senior quarterback Levi Maeyaert throws a pass during a prep football game against Benilde-St. Margaret on Oct. 15 at Southwest Minnesota State University’s Mattke Field.

MARSHALL — For the fourth consecutive season, the Marshall football team is heading to the Section 2AAAA championship game. The Tigers will host Rocori at Mattke Field on Friday at 7 p.m. in a battle of the top two seeds in a section, with a win sending Marshall to the state tournament for the second season in a row.

In the first two of Marshall’s four straight section final appearances, the Tigers had to go on the road to Hutchinson, falling each time by scores of 52-30 in 2022 and 30-14 in 2023.

Yet, Marshall earned the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage last year, resulting in a 35-13 win to break a six-year state tournament drought, and defeated Hutchinson 35-7 in this year’s section semifinals to earn the right to host the section championship once again.

The Tigers enter Friday’s game at a perfect 9-0, while the Spartans enter the game at 8-1. Rocori’s one loss on the season came to Marshall back on Sept. 5 by a score of 28-0.

“We throw [that game] out right now,” Marshall head coach Terry Bahlmann said, noting that Rocori was ranked No. 2 in the state at the time the two teams played and that Marshall scored right before halftime for the game’s first points before capitalizing on turnovers for another 21 second-half points to pull away.

Among those second-half points was a 96-yard pick 6 by Jayden Meister, a preseason All-State selection at cornerback. The Tigers have since lost Meister for the season due to a knee injury after he recorded two interceptions in Marshall’s first two games.

Despite the loss of the 6-foot-7 cornerback, Marshall’s defense has risen to the occasion. The Tigers finished the year with 12 different players recording an interception, from defensive backs to offensive linemen.

“I think our secondary has just gotten better and comfortable. It’s the next man up, and we’ve got good players out there in a good scheme,” Bahlmann said. “When it’s their chance to play, they’re ready to go. Carter Manthei stepped in, Ethan Weedman stepped in and has done a good job for us there, so we’ve done a great job of scheming up against other teams’ offenses.”

Rocori has averaged 23.7 points per game while giving up 15.1, and Marshall has averaged 35.2 points per game while giving up 5.8.

The two teams run drastically different offenses, however. Marshall’s bread and butter has been its running game, which has averaged 207.4 yards per game behind Andrew Stelter’s 57.8 yards per game with 13 touchdowns, and Milo Swenson and Sam Meier adding in another 42.7 and 35.9 yards, respectively.

Rocori, meanwhile, is one of the better passing teams that Marshall has faced. Max Fredin has completed 147 of his 228 passes on the year for 1,743 yards, 12 touchdowns and four interceptions. Levi Maeyaert, meanwhile, has attempted 90 passes for 994 yards, 11 touchdowns and two interceptions.

Bahlmann noted that Rocori runs two offensive schemes, with an empty passing scheme featuring five wide receivers sometimes and a single-wing philosophy that more emphasizes the run game.

“We’ve got to prepare for two different offenses, but obviously we want to put pressure on the quarterback and make him make quick decisions to give us a chance for a takeaway,” Bahlmann said. “Single wing comes, we’ve got to put them in short yardage, very similar to what we just faced against Hutch, so we’ll be prepared. It’s about taking care of the football and, in close games, special teams always matter.”

JR Vierstraete has been at the center of Marshall’s defensive game plan with a team-leading 12 tackles for loss and a sack over the course of the regular season. His 39 total tackles also trailed only Tyson Louwagie’s 42, and his two forced fumbles and two fumbles recovered are both team-highs.

Heading into Friday’s game, Bahlmann said his team is as healthy as can be heading into the 10th game of the season, and that any bumps and bruises should melt away by the time adrenaline kicks in at kickoff.

Even with the pressure of a section championship game impending, the Marshall football team still looks to support its peers. Many of the Tigers attended Friday’s 2AAA volleyball championship to cheer on Marshall against Willmar, with Bahlmann just telling the team to stay safe and out of trouble, and to have fun at the end of Wednesday’s practice.

“We’re about school spirit, and the girls will support us when they get the chance so we want to go over and support them,” Bahlmann said. “That makes it fun around the high school. We’ve got a great atmosphere and everybody, every student can be a part of that.”

Kickoff for Friday’s section championship game is slated for 7 p.m. The winner will go on to the state tournament, with state seeding set to be announced on Nov. 1.