Portland Football Defeats Hopkins to advance in Playoffs

On Friday evening, the Portland Raiders hosted the Hopkins Vikings in opening round action of the MHSAA 11-player Division 5 playoffs.

Portland entered the game 7-2 while Hopkins entered the game 5-4.

After receiving the opening kickoff and starting on their own 33, the Portland offense went to work quickly. The Raiders drove deep into Hopkins territory before junior Drew Miller scored on a 15-yard touchdown run. Senior kicker Madison Luxmore connected on the point after giving Portland a 7-0 lead with 7:44 remaining in the first.

The Hopkins offense would start on their own 32, but the fired-up Portland defense would quickly force them to punt. Portland senior Ethan Patrick would receive the punt and run it back for a 64-yard touchdown. Luxmore nailed the extra point and Portland extended their lead to 14-0 with 5:22 left in the first.

After the Portland defense forced Hopkins to punt again, Portland would take over on their own 27. The Raider offense once again drove the ball down the field. The Raider drive was capped off with a one-yard touchdown run by senior quarterback Haden Getchell. The extra point was no good and Portland would extend their lead to 20-0 with 41 seconds left in the first.

After Portland’s kick rolled out of bounds, Hopkins would start on their own 35. The Viking drive was short lived as Portland senior Trent Trierweiler intercepted a Hopkins pass to give Portland the ball at their own 37.

For the first time of the contest, Hopkins would force Portland to punt, and Hopkins would take over at their own 40 with 11:07 left in the second quarter.

The Viking offense would put together their first sustained drive of the evening. Pushing the ball down to the Portland two-yard line. After pushing the Vikings into a 4th and goal on the six, the Portland defense would pick up a huge stop and keep Hopkins from scoring.

After exchanging punts, Hopkins would recover the ball on a Portland fumble and take over in Portland territory. With 24 seconds remaining in the second quarter, the Vikings would reach the end zone for their only score of the evening when junior receiver Tristen Perry caught a 14-yard touchdown pass. The Viking extra point was no good, and the score would move to Portland 20, Hopkins 6.

At halftime, the score would remain 20-6.

Portland would start its first drive of the second half on their own 30. A few plays later, Portland’s Getchell would sprint for a 68-yard touchdown run. Luxmore connected on the extra point and Portland would extend their lead to 27-6 with 8:30 remaining in the third.

Hopkins would start their next possession on their own 32, but Portland would quickly get the ball back when junior Marc Nobis recovered a Viking fumble.

The Portland offense would get to work from Hopkins 18 with 8:15 left in the third. The Raiders would waste little time, and Portland senior Caden Galey would punch it in on a 10-yard touchdown run. Luxmore’s extra point was good, and Portland would extend their led to 34-6 with 7:34 left in the third.

Portland’s final score of the game would come from the defense. As Hopkins lined up to punt from their own end zone, Portland’s Nobis would block the punt. Senior defensive end Brady Bush would recover the blocked ball in the end zone for a Portland touchdown. The extra point was no good, and the score would move to Portland 40, Hopkins 6 with 5:41 remaining in the third.

The Hopkins offense would threaten in the middle of the fourth quarter of play, but Portland senior Andrew Maynard would put an end to that drive when he intercepted the Viking pass in the end zone.

The Raiders would effectively manage the clock for the duration of the fourth quarter to secure a 40-6 victory.

After the game, Portland head coach John Novara would speak to the media. You can see his comments at the video below.

Scoring summary by quarter:

1st – 2nd – 3rd – 4th – Final

Portland 20 - 0 - 20 - 0 = 40

Hopkins 0 - 6 - 0 - 0 = 6

Portland Rushing totals:

Reis Phillips 8 for 31

Trent Trierweiler 1 for 8

Haden Getchell 6 for 72 1 TD

Caden Galey 8 for 91 1 TD

Drew Miller 7 for 39 1 TD

John Dodson 4 for 18

Caden Thelen 1 for 4

Dustin Wolf 2 for 12

Konner Kazamer 3 for 10

Marc Nobis 4 for 36

Portland Passing totals:

Haden Getchell 1 for 2 for 17

Portland Receiving totals:

Caden Galey 1 for 17

Portland Defensive statistics:

Dalton Becker 14 tackles, 4 tackles for loss

Reis Phillips 6 tackles, 1 fumble recovery

Brady Bush 5 tackles, 1 fumble recovery for touchdown

Trent Trierweiler 1 interception

Andrew Maynard 1 interception

The Raiders will advance to host Olivet on Friday, November 5th. The Eagles of Olivet come into the match-up 8-2 after squeezing out a 3-0 first round win over Williamston in overtime.

The winner of Portland and Olivet will move on to regional play and will face the winner of Berrien Springs and Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep.