MITCHELL — As the South Dakota high school football quarterfinals approach, a pair of regular-season rematches approach the bottom half of the Class 11B bracket.

Both matchups feature a favorite to navigate the bracket against a lower-seeded team that pushed them in the regular season and is looking for another chance to unseat a seed, while the winner of the No. 2 battles No. 10 Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central. and no. 3 Mount Vernon/Plankinton ranks with no. 11 St. Thomas More.

Here’s a first look at the familiar foes facing off in the quarterfinal round:

When the Warriors and Blackhawks met in Winner on Sept. 20, the ever-reliable Warriors offense racked up 343 yards, 198 of which came in the second half en route to a 30-18 victory. However, WWSSC’s dynamic offense, which features an all-state passing connection between quarterback Holden Havlik and Ryder Michalek, also proved difficult for Winner to handle. Havlik passed for 291 yards and two touchdowns, with 13 carries for 135 yards and a score to Michalek.

Winner beat Hot Springs 38-14 in the first round in what was another regular season rematch. Meanwhile, WWSSC emerged from a tussle with Aberdeen Roncalli with a 14-13 win to book their continuation with Winner.

Until Thursday night’s first round, the Blackhawks were the only team to score multiple times on the Warriors this season, and their 18 points remains the most ever surrendered by the staunch Winner defense.

Making the trip to Warrior Field and coming away with a win has proven to be a tough task for all comers over the years, but the WWSSC looks as ready as any this season to give Winner a game on its home court .

Blake Durham / Mitchell Republic

Back on August 30, the Cavaliers made the long trip east to take on the Titans in a 36-30 MVP triumph. On the night, Brady Fox and Riley Mayer each went for 100-yard efforts, leading the Titans to 319 yards on the ground. STM countered with a passing attack that saw quarterback Noah Wild throw for four touchdowns.

But since that initial trip to Mount Vernon, the Cavaliers haven’t lost, posting seven straight wins as one of the hottest teams in Class 11B. Vis-a-vis, MVP went astray, tripped only by winner no. 2 and by Elk Point-Jefferson number 4.

The two teams are coming off very different games in the first round. As STM defeated lower-seeded Groton Area, cruising to a 40-13 victory, MVP had its hands full with Wagner. Although the Titans won 36-6 over the Red Raiders at Wagner during the regular season, the second attempt was a much tougher test as MVP held on for an 8-0 win.

If the first meeting was any indication, perhaps an instant classic is in store for part two at Heroes Field.

Mitchell Republic file photo

While not rematches from the 2024 regular season, several nine-man quarterfinal pairings have recent history between the two teams.

The only matchup in Class 9B with recent history is no. 4 Corsica-Stickney vs. No. 5 Sully Buttes, two programs that are no strangers to each other. This will mark the fourth consecutive season that the Jaguars and Chargers have met, although for the first time in the postseason.

Last season, Corsica-Stickney went 14-0 in a defensive battle, avenging back-to-back losses to Sully Buttes, which won 32-14 in 2022 and 30-8 in 2021. Of note, the home team won the last two meetings, likely giving the Jaguars a slight edge next week.

Three of the four Class 9AA quarterfinal pairings this year have also been playoff matchups in the past three seasons. Parkston and Leola/Frederick Area met in the first round of Class 9AA in 2022, a 46-6 Parkston victory during the Trojans’ first straight march to the DakotaDome. This year, the two programs meet in the quarterfinals, with Parkston as the No. 1 seed and LFA as the No. 8 seed.

Another Class 9AA quarterfinal on deck next week pits No. 2 Hamlin against No. 7 Viborg-Hurley, which was also a first-round pairing in 2022. In that most recent meeting, the Chargers won by 41-8 as seed no. .

A year earlier in the Class 9AA first round, Hanson was the No. 1 seed and ran away with a 70-22 victory over the No. 16, Elkton-Lake Benton. This time around, the Elks will have a significant advantage over the Beavers as the two meet as the No. 3 and No. 11 seeds, respectively.

In Class 9A, No. 2 Howard hosts No. 7 Ipswich is a repeat of the Class 9AA first round a year ago, a 60-14 Howard win on the road at the DakotaDome. Meanwhile, No. 3 Warner and No. 6 Philip is a first-round rematch from 2021, when the Monarchs ran away with a 54-0 victory as the No. 5 seed.

Dierks covers prep and collegiate athletics in the Mitchell Republic region coverage area. His areas of interest include: Mitchell High School football and boys basketball; high school area football, volleyball, basketball, baseball and track and field; and South Dakota State football. He also spearheads Republic of Mitchell’s podcasting efforts. Dierks is a Mitchell native who graduated from South Dakota State University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism in May 2020. He joined the Mitchell Republic sports staff in August 2021. He can be reached at [email protected] and found on Twitter at @LDierksy.