Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Matt Condon of Manson Northwest Webster scores a touchdown against Hudson on Friday in Manson.

MANSON — Another first was reached for Manson Northwest Webster on the gridiron Friday night.

A week removed from the Cougars’ first district title since 1994, head coach Zach Noffsinger’s team added a postseason victory in front of a happy and partisan Orange and Gray crowd.

A stout defensive effort turned aside a potentially potent Hudson, 18-7, to advance MNW in the Class 1A postseason.

Noffsinger was quick to praise the biggest key towards the program’s first playoff victory since 2013.

“Our defense was superb (last night),” Noffsinger said. “(Hudson senior quarterback Kiean Crile) is one of the best quarterbacks we’ve seen all season. He made things tough, as he is very mobile and has a strong arm.

“We were able to slow them down in the second half after they had a lead for a while in the first half. Our offense struggled at times, but hit some big plays to get us into the end zone. It all culminated in us getting another first which we’ve been doing a lot this season.”

The big-play theme started late in the first quarter. With the visiting Pirates on the move, Crile rolled out and fired a pass in the flat that Manson Northwest Webster senior Logan Moline – his counterpart – played beautifully and rambled 80 yards to the end zone for a pick six.

Hudson rebounded in the second frame. After stopping their hosts on a fourth and short near midfield, Crile took off on a draw play and bolted 45 yards for a touchdown.

MNW came back later in the quarter with a strong stop of their own at the Hudson 40. Senior skill player standout Matt Condon took a counter and scooted into the clear for a touchdown and a 12-7 lead that the Cougars wouldn’t relinquish.

“I thought that play finally got us going,” Noffsinger pointed out. “We had our heads down a little bit after they took the lead, but once Matt got the big play, the guys were more confident and had their heads up high.”

MNW closed out the scoring with a methodical 62-yard drive in the third period. Senior running back Kamden Birkey, capping off a 24-carry, 109-yard effort on the ground, blasted through the defense and rushed in for a 25-yard score.

From there, the gritty Cougars defense stopped Hudson on downs twice and recorded an interception to extinguish any comeback attempts.

“This group still has more they want to accomplish,” Noffsinger noted when asked about the road ahead. “We’re not planning on being done any time soon. It’s all about continuing to stay together as a team.”

Class 1A second round pairings are scheduled to be announced Saturday.

MNW H

First downs 11 7

Rushes-yards 27-172 30-156

Passing yards 19 17

Total yards 191 173

Return yards 12 121

Fumbles-lost 1-0 1-0

Penalties-yards 10-77 9-50

Punts – avg. 6-34.1 4-37

Hudson 0 7 0 0 – 7

M-NW 6 6 6 0 – 18

MNW – Moline 80-yard int. return (Run failed)

Hudson – Crile 45-yard run (Slade Schneider kick)

MNW – Condon 40-yard run (Run failed)

MNW – Birkey 25-yard run (Run failed)

INDIVIDUAL STATS

Rushing – MNW: Birkey 24-109, Condon 4-43, Meline 3-11, Cooper Harman 5-9; Hudson: Crile 25-119, Schneider 3-21, Blake Taylor 3-11.

Passing – MNW: Moline 2-9-0-19; Hudson: Crile 5-17-2-17.

Receiving–MNW: Broc Patzner 1-14, Condon 1-4; Hudson: Anderson Yoder 3-9. Austin Kliegel 1-5, Schneider 1-3.