Haxtun Bulldogs earn 46-point playoff win over Sanford Mustangs

The Bulldogs put up a dominating performance against Sanford in quarterfinals action on Saturday with a 46-point win that advances the team to the semifinals round of 8-man playoff action. The home field victory over Sanford leaves Haxtun 10-1 on the season and on a 10-game winning streak.

For the second time this season, the Bulldogs met up with the Mustangs on the gridiron, this time in Haxtun with the Mustangs making the nearly 400 mile, one way trip. The two met initially on Sept. 13 in the pre-season, when the Bulldogs topped the Mustangs 60-0 for their second win of the 2024 season.

This time, the 8-man teams met in post-season play, both earning a spot in the quarterfinals bracket following first round wins several weeks ago. The Colorado High School Activities Association ranked Haxtun as the number one team in the 8-man classification by means of RPI figures, Sanford entered the playoff bracket seeded eighth. The Mustangs took down Springfield by two, 20-18, to earn their spot in the quarterfinals, pitting them in a second contest with the Bulldogs this season.

To secure their spot in the quarterfinals, the Bulldogs put up a 60-0 win over Hoehne in round one. Hoehne had entered as the 16th team in CHSAA's post-season bracket.

Haxtun put 16 points on the board in the first quarter while allowing Sanford their only eight points of the contest. The Bulldogs turned things up just before half time, adding 32 points to the score for a 48-8 advantage at the half. Haxtun put up an additional six in the third for their final points of the contest for a 54-8 quarterfinals victory at Adam Wernsman Field on Saturday.

"We had a little adversity early in the game, I was proud how the boys and the coaches responded," said Bulldog Football Head Coach JD Stone.

Haxtun completed 35 plays against the Mustangs on Saturday, including 13 first downs. As quarterback, senior Ryland Wolff completed two passes for 45 yards and one touchdown. He averaged 45 yards per pass in the match up. Corbin Andersen caught one of Wolff's passes for a 38 yard touchdown. Colin Cone caught the other for a seven yard reception.

Wolff led the Bulldog ground game with 193 rushing yards. He carried the ball seven times for an average of 27.6 yards per carry. He also registered two rushing touchdowns. Zach Statz carried the ball six times for a total of 141 yards on the ground. He had four rushing touchdowns Saturday and averaged 23.5 yards per carry.

The Bulldogs registered 72 total tackles; 22 solo and the rest assisted.

"We had 50 assisted tackles," Stone said. "Assisted tackles show the heart of a defense. Solo tackles are great, but that just tells me you did your job, assisted tackles tells me the defense is hustling and trying to be as physical as possible."

Seth Seger registered one sack on Sanford's quarterback.

"Sanford has a very dynamic quarterback; we didn't want him to take the game over and our defense made sure of that," said Stone.

In their 11 games this season, the Bulldogs have allowed their opponents a combined 74 points; only 12 of those put up by League opponents and just eight in the post season.

Total, Haxtun has racked up 572 points this season, averaging 52 points per game.

This week Haxtun is set to host Mancos, a team the Bulldogs are no strangers to. The Bluejays, according to MaxPreps, are also 10-1 with a solo blemish to the same team as the Bulldogs. Mancos suffered a 50-22 loss to Melrose, N.M. in their season opener; Haxtun lost to Melrose 44-36 to open their season in August.

So clinch their semifinals spot, Mancos, the fourth seeded team, took down Byers last week, 44-20.

Over the past three years, the Bulldogs have seen Mancos twice in the 8-man State playoffs, specifically the Championship title game. In 2021, the contest went to the Bulldogs, 40-0. Last year, the 8-man title went to Mancos by the same score.

"We must control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball," Stone said of the upcoming match up with the Bluejays. "We need to focus on the 2024 team and not dwell on the 2021 or 2023 teams."

The Bulldogs will take on Mancos at home on Adam Wernsman Field on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 1 p.m. The winner of that contest will secure a spot in the 8-man championship against the winner of number three Akron and seven Simla, also set for Nov. 23. According to CHSAA's website, the 8-man championship game has been moved to Dutch Clark Stadium in Pueblo. That game will be played on Friday, Nov. 29 at 5 p.m.