—Photo by Julie Vinsand, The Gowrie News Southeast Valley will play on Saturday morning in the Class 2A state football semifinals. Team members are, front row (left to right): Tre Fisher, Kolson Kruse, Aaron Graves, Colton Brant and Pierce Woodruff. Second: Zack Miller, Caden Larson, Kaleb Scott, Harley Bryson, Rylie Ferrari, Soren Winkler and Lathe Muench. Third: Megan Davis (athletic trainer), Mitch Murphy (assistant coach), Aaron Swieter (assistant coach), Gary Balk (assistant coach), Mike Swieter (head coach), Mark Graves (assistant coach) and Kyle Johnson (assistant coach). Fourth: Taylor Wilke (manager), Colby Wilke, Eli Johnson, Carl Berglund, Justin Loseke, Drew Corell, Ethan Ackerson and Evan Zeka. Fifth: Amy Lorraine (manager), Calvin Riehl, Logan Songer, Michael Eslick, Gavin Weier, Nathan Roberts, Nate Scott and Reed Andrews (manager). Sixth: Jared Cloud, Tyler Moreland, Isaiah Ihrig, Ethan Peed, Jace Hanson, Andrew Miller, Ross Larson and Dalton Crouse. Seventh: Jace Nelson, Carter Ferry, Brady Hanson, Cale Vansickle, Drake Warland and Brad Pliner. Back: Gauge Jones, Steven Fisher, Aden Jepsen, Grant Farnham, Lenix Albee, Nathan Graves, Ryan Wicklein and Owen Steck.

CEDAR FALLS — Reaching the UNI-Dome was the top priority for the Southeast Valley football team.

After that goal was achieved, it was time to raise the bar and chase their childhood dreams.

For the first time in school history, Southeast Valley (10-1 overall) will play in the state semifinals. The Jaguars face Waukon (10-1) in a Class 2A state semifinal on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 10 a.m.

“We have prepared for this game like any other,” said SVHS head coach Mike Swieter. “Our group is ready and they know what they’ve set their goals for.

“We just need to take care of ourselves. Our preparation has been to focus on our offensive schemes and adjust it when we need to.”

At the beginning of the season, Southeast Valley had high hopes. As the year progressed, the Jaguars knew the sky was the limit.

“At the start of the year we set a goal to make the Dome, at that time it felt like it was so far in the future,” said senior tight end Colton Brant. “It’s crazy that we are here already. Sometimes we questioned whether or not we were good enough to make it. Over the course of the season we started to believe it.

“Now that we are about to play our first game in the Dome, it doesn’t feel any different. We are showing up to play football. You can tell after the win on Friday, no one was satisfied. I think looking back, we will appreciate it more, but right now we all just see it as another step to our final goal.”

The Jaguars, who have lost only two games in the past two years, have built a strong campaign and the community has rallied around the program.

“This season has been huge,” Swieter said. “It’s been great for the kids and the community.

“We have had great fan support and they have had our backs this entire season. We’ve had a great following and terrific support.”

When the sixth-ranked Jaguars began their quarterfinal game against top-ranked OABCIG, it looked like smooth sailing after opening a 26-0 lead at halftime. Southeast Valley took a 34-6 lead, before the Falcons went on a furious rally.

OABCIG scored 22 unanswered points in the final 2:12 of the game and had the ball with 18 seconds remaining before the Jaguars held on to prevail, 34-28.

“Honestly, once that game was done, we moved on,” Swieter said. “We laughed about it and knew how much of a choke job that would have been.

“You can’t talk about it. It’s life — we won.”

No. 2 Waukon earned the semifinal berth with a 28-14 win over North Fayette. The Indans ran for 397 yards, led by Pat Hennessy’s 248 yards and two scores. Lincoln Snitker ran for 150 and a TD.

The Indians, the defending 2A state champions, have built a strong tradition on the gridiron. Waukon has reached the semifinals in each of the last five seasons. They have played in two straight championship games, and have been in three of the last four finals.

“They have been to the Dome five straight years and two straight finals,” Swieter said. “They’re a great program, and that’s all that matters.”

Hennessy leads the ground attack with 1,887 yards and 26 touchdowns. He averages 9.8 yards per carry on 192 totes. Snitker has 850 yards and 10 touchdowns with an 11.3 average.

Quarterback Noah Hatlan has thrown for 1,381 yards and 15 scores. Harlan’s main target is Snitker, who has 31 catches for 531 and seven scores.

“They want to run the ball and show you many different formations,” Swieter said. “They try to confuse you and throw you off. They are a very good running team.”

The Jaguars enter with a balanced scoring attack, led by seniors Kolson Kruse and Lathe Muench on the ground.

Kruse has rushed for 1,278 yards and 13 touchdowns, while Muench has 932 yards and 21 scores. Muench is the school leader in career rushing TDs with 45.

Behind center, Kruse has thrown for 1,944 yards. He passed Hunter Kruse on the school’s passing touchdown list for second, with 35. He has 23 this season.

“Through our relentless work, we put ourselves in this dream position of being in the Dome,” Kruse said. “It’s going to be a day we will never forget.

“However, the best part is we’re not done yet. We still have more to accomplish together.”

Senior Tre Fisher and junior Eli Johnson are the top wideouts. Fisher has 751 yards on 32 catches and nine touchdowns. Johnson has 28 catches for 647 and eight touchdowns.

Brant has 393 yards and six scores.

The defense is led by junior Justin Loseke and senior Aaron Graves. Loseke has a team-high 74 tackles to go along with a time-high 5.5 sacks.

Graves, the University of Iowa recruit, has 54 tackles. He is the school’s career leader in tackles (212), sacks (34.5) and tackles for loss (56). Loseke has 187.5 career tackles.