Eisenhower keeps marching through 5A playoffs by beating Maize South

They call themselves Area 51 and if you didn’t know why before Friday night, then you did after Eisenhower shut out Maize South 16-0 to advance to the Class 5A semifinals.

“We’re a no-fly zone,” Eisenhower safety Noah Strunk said. “No one passes on us.”

The nicknamed originated from the team’s safeties, Strunk and Huelsmann, whose numbers add up to 51, but they decided to expand to include cornerbacks Drake Damon, Nick Henning, and Tanner Orand.

The unit lived up to its catchy nickname against Maize South’s dynamo quarterback Korie Frausto, as the Mavericks were limited to 201 yards (only 43 through the air) with five turnovers in the shutout.

“We take pride in that,” said Huelsmann, who forced two turnovers himself. “We don’t say Area 51 just for fun.”

Thanks to a bizarre start to the game, where there were six lost fumbles in the first quarter, the first 22 snaps were played in Eisenhower territory.

But the Tigers (7-4) came through with four defensive stands on their side of the field, three by turnover and another on a fourth-down stop. Maize South (8-3) would drive as close as 15 yards away, but every time Eisenhower’s defense found a way.

While it was the secondary making the plays, it was Eisenhower’s defensive line applying the pressure and the linebackers neutralizing Maize South’s running game that put them in position to look good.

“They’re our bread and butter,” senior receiver Kyle McGreevy said. “They proved why Area 51 is a real thing.”

In a 29-20 loss to Eisenhower earlier this season, Maize South turned the ball over six times with five coming 20 yards or less from the end zone.

“I don’t know what happens when we play them, but I guess we put the ball on the turf,” Maize South coach Brent Pfeifer said. “When you’re playing in the playoffs like that, you just can’t come back from that. The Eisenhower defense was just fantastic tonight.”

After a three-and-out forced by the defense, Eisenhower capitalized on a short field and took a 10-0 lead in the third quarter on a 24-yard touchdown run by Joseph Weibel (136 yards).

Then Eisenhower put away the game with a 22-play, 12-minute drive that featured six conversions on either third or fourth down and ended with McGreevy coming down with a jump-ball pass from Mason Madzey on fourth down for a 21-yard touchdown and a 16-0 lead with 3:16 remaining.

“That’s Eisenhower football for you,” Madzey said. “It’s crazy. This is what we’ve been waiting for.”

And now Eisenhower, a program that had won five games combined the last three seasons, has a date with Bishop Carroll next Friday with a berth to the state championship game on the line.

“I want to believe that deep down inside that we knew we had the talent, we just had to put it together,” Eisenhower coach Marc Marinelli said. “But it’s hard to believe Eisenhower football is in the semifinals. That’s insane.”

This story was originally published November 13, 2015 at 11:46 PM with the headline "Eisenhower keeps marching through 5A playoffs by beating Maize South."