By Hub City Times staff

SPENCER – The Spencer-Columbus Rockets became playoff eligible Sept. 7 with a win over Stanley-Boyd 40-6. The Rockets dominated in every phase of the game, en route to a 4-0 record, which makes them eligible for postseason play.

After stopping the Orioles on the first possession of the game, Hayden Bauman got the S/C scoring started with a 61-yard touchdown run on the Rockets’ first play from scrimmage. That was the first of three first-quarter touchdowns for Bauman, who caught a touchdown pass of 24 yards from quarterback Jarred Mandel, and ran for a 19-yard score as well.

“The guys came out and they executed real well early in the game”, said S/C Head Coach Jason Gorst after the game. “They worked real hard this week and put in a ton of time. I thought that they were very well prepared. Coach (Todd) Hildebrandt did a good job with them. We got pretty technical with some things. We knew that Stanley-Boyd does a lot of dynamic things. I was really impressed with the guys’ work ethic, both mentally and physically throughout the week in practice, and so it’s good to see them go out and execute.”

And, execute they did. Mandel connected on his second touchdown of the game in the second quarter, when he found Austin Bacon from three yards out to make the score 28-0 at halftime.

The Spencer-Columbus offense kept rolling to start the third quarter, as the Rockets went on an eight-play 70-yard drive to start the second half, capped off by a 14-yard touchdown run by Carson Hildebrandt. The S/C defense continually rose to the occasion, as well. Following the ensuing kickoff, the Orioles ran the ball for –2 yards. On the next play, Stanley-Boyd fumbled, and the ball kept rolling backwards until Hildebrandt recovered it in the Stanley-Boyd end zone for another S/C score, as the Rockets put the game away early in the second half.

The Rockets did give up a late touchdown, but the game was decided by then.

Spencer/Columbus outgained Stanley-Boyd 380-161. The Rockets were led by Hayden Bauman with eight rushes for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Eden Jacobson ran the ball three times for 51 yards, all during the opening touchdown drive of the third quarter. Quarterback Jarred Mandel was 8-for-17 for 84 yards and two scores. Austin Bacon caught five of those passes for 54 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, Logan Zschernitz and Nate Karau each had a quarterback sack. With the win, the Rockets are eligible for the playoffs. They are guaranteed a spot in postseason with one more win; that could come Sept. 14 at Neillsville/Granton.