WEBSTER CITY – With their home football fields separated by somewhere in the vicinity of 165 miles, it’s a safe bet that Webster City and Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley weren’t all that aware of one another as both celebrated first-round wins in the Class 3A state playoffs last Wednesday night.

But both began to cram for their next test about an hour later.

The guideline of not pitting teams that are separated by more than 125 miles in the playoffs was thrown out the window by the Iowa High School Athletic Association when it matched up fourth-ranked WCHS (10-0) and BHRV (8-2) against one another. They’ll meet tonight at Lynx Field at 7 p.m. for the right to advance to Friday’s quarterfinals.

“We figured it would be Ballard, but when Harlan got beat (by Creston/Orient-Macksburg in the first round), they had to have that No. 4 (seed) play a No. 1, and they weren’t going to send them all the way up here. So that’s where we’re at.

“It’s a long trip for (BHRV), that’s for sure.”

It’s also an intriguing match-up between programs that have never met. BHRV entered the playoffs as a No. 3 seed, but upset 10th-ranked Sioux City Heelan, 24-16, in the opening round to avenge a regular season loss. WCHS faced a rematch and thumped Humboldt, 35-0.

The Lynx have faced a number of quality teams this season and own wins over two teams that remain in the playoffs – Gilbert and Carroll. But the Nighthawks present their own set of challenges, including a balanced spread offense that can throw and run with success.

“They’re obviously a good team or they wouldn’t have beaten Heelan,” Howard said. “They’re a typical northwest team; they’re big, tough and athletic. I think it will definitely be the best defense we’ll have played.”

BHRV has allowed just 16.5 points per game in its eight victories, but will have to take a crash course in learning how to shutdown the Lynx single-wing offensive scheme that has vaulted them to No. 2 in the class in ground yards (3,400).

Tackling senior tailback Gavin Dinsdale is easier said than done, too. He enters the fray with 1,493 yards and 23 touchdowns on the season. Wingback Payton Kannuan became the team’s second 1,000-yard rusher with a 200-yard effort against Humboldt; he has 1,044 and nine TD’s. Spinback Avery Fuhs is a weapon as well with 751 yards rushing and 749 passing.

All of the statistics look great. But Howard knows this game, just like any other, will come down to how well his line can shove the Nighthawks off the ball.

“They look like they’re big and physical,” Howard said. “Their second level flows to the ball really fast, but if they flow really fast with a bad read, that’s when we can break things.”

Dinsdale averages 28 carries a game. If things go according to plan, he may blow past that number.

“Our best defense is having the ball in our hands and that’s where Gavin comes into play,” Howard said. “I don’t figure they’re going to really try to overload to the strong side to begin with, but they may as the game goes on. If they do, we’ll go the other way (with Kannuan).”

Ball control will be vital for WCHS. The Nighthawks have the ability to score points in bunches – they average 32.2 per game – and have a number of weapons. Quarterback Brett Moser has thrown for 789 yards and 10 TD’s in an abbreviated season due to injury. His back-up, Brady Post, adds another 770 yards and eight scores to the passing haul.

BHRV has eight players that have collected more than 100 receiving yards, led by Shane Solberg (22 catches, 303 yards, six TD’s) and Kyle Van Ginkel (15 catches, 261 yards, two TD’s). Five players have multiple touchdown receptions.

Running the ball is another option. Myles Van Maanen owns 1,110 yards and 15 TD’s on the ground.

Tackling has been a strength of the WCHS defense this season, led by senior linebacker Victor Jergens, who has 68 solo tackles – the third-best total in the class. Defensive backs Landon Daniels and Alec Fuhs have proven to be quality cover corners as well.

“To me, this is going to come down to tackling in the open field,” Howard said. “They do a lot of things to get their playmakers the ball out in open space and we’ll need to tackle them.”