(Logan) A regular season rematch with Woodbury Central is what separates Logan-Magnolia from a trip to dome. Each team has one loss and is ranked in the top five.
The Panthers led much of the way in the regular season, but fell 18-13. “Man, tight game. We took the lead, they crawled back and made it a one score game, we were a first down away from ending it, they got the ball and threw a 40 yard touchdown pass with about a minute left to win. We felt like that got away from us at the end. With that being said they are a really good team and I expect a similar type game.” Logan-Magnolia coach Matt Straight says his team has played well since, but really turned it on in the playoffs. “Kind of did what they had to do to get them in position to be in the postseason and play farther than they did last year. Last year we made it to this round in the final eight and the quarterfinal round. They want to go farther. They know what’s in front of them and I think playing better because of it.”
A week ago they topped Mount Ayr 34-7. Logan-Magnolia’s rushing attack ranks #3 in Class A. Gavin Maguire leads the charge with 20 touchdowns and over 1,500 yards. “He looks at first down markers and looks at end zones. A lot of people especially in high school always want to bounce things outside because that’s where no body is and Gavin never does that. Gavin is always north and south and as fast as he can. That’s good for our offense because we want to get first down and if it takes us three or four plays we are okay with that. So he fits what we do really well.”
Last year it was St. Albert topping Logan-Magnolia 24-0 in the quarterfinals. The Panthers took an 8-1 record into that matchup and walked away with a sour taste.
Logan-Magnolia coach Matt Straight:
