JAMESTOWN, ND. (NewsDakota.com) – For the second consecutive season, the Jamestown High School football team is headed back to the Fargodome as the Blue Jays took down Grand Forks Red River 27-13 in the 11A semifinals.

Neither team got on the scoreboard in the opening quarter of play but Jamestown quickly jumped ahead 6-0 in the second with Payton Hochhalter rushing one in from six yards out for a touchdown. Red River responded with a score of their own to take a 7-6 lead over the Blue Jays.

Later in the second quarter, Hochhalter led the Blue Jays down the field once again and connected with Nate Walz for a 22-yard touchdown on fourth down. Jamestown converted the two-point conversion with an Aden Braun reception to head into the half with a 14-7 lead.

Both teams were held scoreless in the third quarter but Bo Nelson had a crucial interception that thwarted a Red River drive that had crossed midfield. In the fourth, Hochhalter found Jackson Walters on a 4th down play from 25-yards out for Walters’s 13th touchdown catch of the season that essentially put the game away. That drive was all set up by a fumble recovery for sophomore Kelan Harstad.

Jamestown would score one more time with a Josh Roberston one-yard score before a late touchdown by the Roughriders made it 27-13. Hochhalter did a little of everything for the Jays on Friday night, going 16-31 through the air for 269 yards and three total touchdowns. The senior quarterback also had 82 yards rushing. Jackson Walters had five catches for 90 yards and a score and Walz hauled in three receptions for 72 yards and one touchdown.

With the victory, Jamestown improves to 9-2 on the year and are headed back to the Dakota Bowl for the second straight season. The Blue Jays will be the home team and will face off against Fargo North for the 11A state championship. Jamestown is trying to repeat as state champs and would be the first team to do so in 11A since St. Mary’s won back-to-back titles in 2016 and 2017. Coverage of the Dakota Bowl game will begin following the 9-man championship around 3:00 PM. You can listen to the full game on Jamestown 1071/1400, online at newsdakota.com, or on the Jamestown 107.1 app.