By Joanna Chadwick

Andale played its best game of the season in its 49-0 win over Clearwater in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs on Nov. 8.

“It ebbs and flows throughout the season,” Andale coach Dylan Schmidt said. “Sometimes you come out and you’re not highly motivated and you make mistakes. But last game, I was really impressed with how we played.”

Andale has been impressive all season, outscoring opponents 444-68 on its way to a 10-0 record. The Indians play at Beloit (7-3) in Friday’s quarterfinals.

Andale has three shutouts, and its 78-0 win over Trinity Academy in Week 5 ended at halftime.

The first time Andale played Clearwater in Week 7, Andale won 50-12.

“In that game, we didn’t out to a good start and it’s 22-12 at halftime,” Schmidt said. “We were highly motivated this time to get off to a good start.

“… We had four straight possessions where we had an interception or took it away. We didn’t score on our first drive, and then we scored on four or five in a row. From the start we were in it.”

Eli Rowland had four interceptions in the game. He also had two rushing touchdowns and had a punt return for a touchdown called back.

“He was phenomenal,” Schmidt said. “He’s a tremendous player for us. He leads us in touchdowns on the year with 19. He’s only averaging about 10 carries a game, but he has almost 1,000 yards. We’ve had running clock in six games and the Trinity game ended at hte half.”

No surprise, Andale is far from being a one-man show.

The defense has dominated opponents with the varsity allowing about four points a game.

There’s Easton Hunter, who plays quarterback, safety and punter.

Lineman Carson Fair.

Defensive back Scotti Easter

Linebackers Mac Brand and Caden Parthemer.

“We have 38 takeaways this season,” Schmidt said. “That’s been a huge advantage. We have fast, physical kids…. The only stat we keep in our locker room is on a whiteboard — takeaways vs. turnovers. We are taking the ball away, and we talk about it all the time every day.”