Jayton to make 9th trip to state quarterfinals

Bulldogs score first bi-district victory since ’10

Jayton to make 9th trip to state quarterfinals

Since 1984 the Jayton Jaybirds have won bi-district nine times, advancing to the state quarterfinals with each win. The Jaybirds put away the Woodson Cowboys Friday night 50-0 to capture a Division II, six-man, bi-district crown, earning a ticket to the state quarterfinals, where they must face a new set of Cowboys.

This year’s quarterfinal opponent will be the Grandfalls-Royalty Cowboys.

And if that name has a familiar ring to it — in a Groundhog Day kind of way — it’s because the Jaybirds played Grandfalls-Royalty last year in the quarterfinals.

Behind several key defensive stops and a monster game by running back Tye Scogin, Jayton defeated Grandfalls-Royalty 66-52 to advance to the state semifinals.

According to Jaybirds head coach Josh Stanaland, the key in going up against Grandfalls-Royalty again is, “Treating it like any other game. We have a veteran group that’s played a lot of ball. They know what’s on the line, and they’ll be ready.”

As for this week’s Cowboys, he said, “Grandfalls returns five starters off of last year’s team, so they are similar to 2018. We were able to come out with a win last year, but our kids know that the result of that game will have no bearing on what happens Friday night. Those were two different teams.”

As the number one team in the state in their division — since preseason — the Jaybirds have overcome injuries and obstacles to maintain an undefeated season.

Going into the quarterfinal playoff, Stanaland assessed the ’Birds’ readiness. “We should be at 100% on Friday. We were short one starter against Wood-son last week, but it was not a serious injury — just precautionary.”

The quarterfinal will be Friday, Nov. 22, at 7 p.m. in Garden City.