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Callahan, Cunningham Lead Raiders Past Hornets

By STAFF, 11/13/17, 9:00AM CST

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The Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders are moving on.

Quarterback Danny Callahan completed seven passes for 156 yards and a pair of touchdowns, linebacker Matt Cunningham recorded 11 tackles and the Raiders defeated the Edina Hornets 28-14 at White Bear Lake high school on Friday night.

“It’s a monster rally like we said before,” said Cunningham, who forced a turnover for the second consecutive week. “We have been rallying the whole time; we haven’t lost since Blaine in Week 4.

“Now the rally continues. We know what is at stake.”

CDH, which recorded a shutout last week against Shakopee, came out strong defensively once again. The Raiders defense was flying to the ball all night with linebacker Charlie Dennis leading the team with 12 tackles. Behind Cunningham and Dennis, CDH held Edina largely in check during the first half, recording multiple key stops with the Hornets threatening to score.

“If they’re in the red zone, and we stop them, that’s pretty demoralizing,” Cunningham said. “We stopped them that whole first half, so that was pretty nice.”

Then the Raiders offense got it going. Running back Zion Guerra put the Raiders on the board with a 32-yard touchdown with four minutes remaining in the second quarter, and Callahan led an outstanding two-minute drill resulting in a 25-yard touchdown by Peter Udoibok to send CDH into the halftime locker room up 14-0.

“We just had a great week of practice,” Callahan said. “Coach put together a great game plan, and we just went out and executed. Last week our offense didn’t play well, but the defense has backed us up.

“Today we just kind of put everything together.”

Edina responded early during the third quarter, producing a long touchdown drive to cut the Raiders’ lead in half. But Callahan and Andrew Mooney were up to the challenge, as the CDH quarterback found his big tight end for a 24-yard score midway through the third quarter.

“I have so much confidence in both Jaylen [Newton] and Peter [Udoibok],” Callahan said. “I just feel very confident throwing to those guys because I know they are going to come down with it.”

The Hornets did not go away quietly, however. Edina scored once again to slice the CDH lead back to seven with three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but Guerra quickly put an end to any attempt at a comeback with a 43-yard touchdown run that sent the Raiders student section into a frenzy. The sophomore running back finished the evening with 12 carries for 128 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

CDH will square off against Minnetonka at U.S. Bank Stadium next Friday at 7 p.m. Minnetonka defeated Prior Lake 10-6 on Friday night in order to advance to the state semifinals.

“I’m just so excited for these guys,” CDH head coach Brooks Bollinger said. “They put the work in all summer and all season; they deserve this.”

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter

No points scored.

2nd quarter

Zion Guerra 32-Yard Rushing Touchdown; Extra Point Attempt Converted (Louie Rottjakob), 4:01
Danny Callahan 25-Yard Passing Touchdown (Peter Udoibok); Extra Point Attempt Converted (Louie Rottjakob), 0:28

3rd quarter

Edina Rushing Touchdown; Extra Point Attempt Converted, Time Unavailable
Danny Callahan 24-Yard Passing Touchdown (Andrew Mooney); Extra Point Attempt Converted (Louie Rottjakob), 8:12

4th quarter

Edina Rushing Touchdown; Extra Point Attempt Converted, 3:11
Zion Guerra 43-Yard Rushing Touchdown; Extra Point Attempt Converted (Louie Rottjakob), 1:27

key statistics

offense

QB Danny Callahan: 7/12, 156 Yards, 2 Touchdowns, 1 Interception
RB Zion Guerra: 12 Carries, 128 Yards, 2 Touchdowns
RB Tony Underwood: 17 Carries, 71 Yards
WR Peter Udoibok: 3 Receptions, 62 Yards, Touchdown
TE Jacob Prince: 2 Receptions 50 Yards
TE Andrew Mooney: 1 Reception, 24 Yards, Touchdown

defense

DL Charles Phythian: 1 Sack
LB Charlie Dennis: 12 Tackles
LB Matt Cunningham: 11 Tackles, 1 Tackle for Loss, 1 Fumble Recovery