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It didn’t matter whether it was cousin Casey or cousin Andy touching the ball. If it was in their hands, it was moving toward the end zone.
And Luverne, playing in its third consecutive MSHSL Class AA state championship game, didn’t have an answer.
Casey Bauer threw three touchdown passes and rushed for another score, while Andy Bauer caught two of his cousin’s TD passes and had 176 all-purpose yards as the Warriors pounded the Cardinals 47-7 to win their second consecutive state title.
“I don’t know,” junior Isaac Fruechte said when asked who should be the team’s most valuable player in the game. “Andy and Casey both played such a good game.”
The ninth-ranked Warriors (13-1) took full advantage of Casey’s command of the offense and Andy’s blinding speed to beat third-ranked Luverne (12-2) in the title game a second consecutive time.
“We’ve been looking for this the whole year, and we just came out and tried hard to get it,” said Casey Bauer, who passed for 181 yards and rushed for 30. “We came out real strong, took the momentum, and I think that’s what got us the game.”
Caledonia reached the end zone on its second and third possessions and forced a fumble late in the first quarter to set Ryan Goetzinger up for a 20-yard field goal that produced a 17-0 lead.
By the time Goetzinger kicked another field goal on the last play of the first half, the Warriors were in full control with a 27-7 lead.
“If they went Cover-3 (defensively), we were going to pass,” Andy Bauer said. “And if they went Cover-2 (defensively), we were gonna run.
“That’s just what we did.”
Caledonia ran the ball for solid yards with Alex Schleich — he had 88 and a touchdown on 26 carries — and went to Andy Bauer for a spark.
They tried to spring him on a reverse in the second quarter, but it only went for 4 yards. But when they gave it to him again on third-and-8 from their own 38 on the next possession, he broke two tackles and split two defenders to turn it into a 34-yard gain.
The run kept alive a drive that was ended by Schleich’s TD run that produced a 24-7 lead with 2 minutes, 26 seconds left in the half.
It got worse from there for the Cardinals, who were beaten in every phase of the game and had 77 of their 144 total yards on one play. Luverne was also held to five first downs.
“This is just crazy,” said Caledonia coach Carl Fruechte, who has now led his team to the state finals three times in the last four seasons. “I just feel real fortunate right now to be honest with you.”
