NorthWood running back Brayton Yoder finds room to run against New Haven in the regional championship. Yoder set the school rushing record Friday night in NorthWood’s 52-28 win. (File photos by Mike Deak)

NAPPANEE – The Northwood offense has been downright heavenly this season.

Can a group of Red Devils slow down the potent Panther attack?

The answer to that question will go a long way towards determining a semistate champion come Friday night.

Undefeated and No. 2 ranked NorthWood hits the road to face host Lowell in the Class 4-A Northern Semistate clash. The Panthers boast a 13-0 mark, tied for the most single-season wins in program history with the 1993 team that earned a state runner-up finish. The host Red Devils have rebounded from a slow start to win seven straight games to sit at 9-4.

NorthWood, in being rarely tested all regular season or postseason for that matter, averages 46.8 points-per-game with its plethora of playmakers. Lowell allows just 12.9 points-per-game. The Panthers winning margin is a whopping 28 points-per-game, while the Red Devils is 20.6. NorthWood’s closest game all year was a 14-0 Northern Lakes Conference win over Northridge on Sept. 23. The Panthers then ripped the Raiders 44-13 in a sectional semifinal game on Oct. 28.

NorthWood’s Landen Gessinger poses with the regional championship placard Friday night after the Panthers’ win over New Haven.

The Panthers pummeled New Haven 52-28 a week ago in the regional final at Andrews Field. Junior Brayton Yoder rushed for a single-game record 251 yards and scored four touchdowns to lead the romp, which saw NorthWood score 29 straight points at one point in the contest. The Panthers, who scored 50 or more points for the eighth time this season, rushed for 334 yards in the regional game. Yoder’s record-setting effort broke the previous mark of 228 yards in a game by current NorthWood coach Nate Andrews.

Lowell claimed its regional title last Friday night by avenging a regular-season loss. The Red Devils beat host Hobart 44-23 by tallying 30 unanswered points and holding the Brickies scoreless in the second half. Hobart had defeated Lowell 18-12 back on Sept. 23.

NorthWood senior Trey Bilinski is the man who directs the prolific and balanced Panthers’ offense, which averages 241 yards passing and 232 yards rushing per game. Bilinski, the 6-3, 189-pound signal caller, has thrown for 3,127 yards with 38 touchdowns and just five interceptions in 304 pass attempts this fall. He has also carried the ball 63 times for 331 yards and five more scores.

Brayton Yoder is the top back for NorthWood. He has 122 carries for 1,154 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground. Sophomore Bronson Yoder has 152 carries for 813 yards and 12 touchdowns, while junior Payton Bear has 108 rushes for 650 yards and six touchdowns.

The tandem of Deandre Smart and Bronson Yoder are the two favorite targets for Bilinski.  Junior Smart has 55 receptions for 1,022 yards and 14 touchdowns, while Yoder has 51 catches for 985 yards and eight scores. Junior Landen Gessinger has 32 catches for 414 yards and six touchdowns and senior Drew Minnich 27 grabs for 402 yards and also six scores.

The Red Devils count on one player to carry the majority of their offensive load. Senior Trevor Espravnik, a 5-11, 184-pounder, has 285 rushes for 1,757 yards and 27 touchdowns. He had 38 carries for 183 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s regional win.

Lowell averages 233 yards rushing per game, but just 67 yards passing per outing. Sophomore quarterback Ethan Igras is 36-74 passing for 660 yards and nine touchdowns, while senior Dayton Hornickel is 25-56 for 272 yards and two scores. Junior Jaeger Gill has rushed for 349 yards and three touchdowns, while junior Mitchell Widman is the top receiver with 14 catches for 278 yards and five touchdowns.

The Red Devils have went 7-0 since Igras took over under center. The 5-9, 163-pound quarterback has rushed for 238 yards and is averaging 9.9 yards per carry. Lowell, which has rushed for 3,040 yards as a team, is averaging 44 points-per-game during its current winning streak.

Minnich paces the Black Crunch defense for NorthWood. The senior has 100 total tackles, including a team-high 13 for loss. The trio of Bear (69), senior Dylan Brugh (65, 11 for loss) and junior Ingle Will (63, 12 for loss) are also key on defense.

The trio of junior Jordan Jusevitch (91), sophomore Blake Jansky (90) and Widman (84) lead the way in tackles for the Lowell defense.

Jusevitch, who was a prep All-American last year, could be the wild card for the Red Devils. The 5-11, 201-pound junior defensive back, who recently returned after missing two games due to an injury, has five interceptions. Jusevitch, who is reportedly being recruited by Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Michigan State, returned a punt for a touchdown and also had six carries on offense in last week’s regional win over Hobart. Jusevitch has been offered a scholarship already by Central Michigan.

The Red Devils began the season at 0-2 with losses to Crown Point (9-3 in double overtime) and Portage (28-27). Lowell, who also lost to Griffith 17-9 and Hobart 18-12, was at 2-4 before its current seven-game winning streak.

Lowell is coached by Keith Kilmer, a 1991 Fairfield High School graduate. Kilmer is 51-28 in his seventh season at Lowell.

NorthWood has won five semistate title in the history of its tradition-rich program with the last being a Class 3-A crown back in 2005. The Red Devils, who were ranked No. 1 and undefeated last year before being upset by South Bend St. Joseph 7-6 in the regional, own three semistate championships with the last coming in 2009.

The winner of the NorthWood-Lowell game earns a spot in the Class 4-A state championship game on Friday, Nov. 25 at 3:30 p.m. in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. They will meet the winner of the Roncalli versus East Central game. No. 1 Roncalli is 13-0, while No. 7 East Central is 11-2.

Kickoff for the NorthWood at Lowell game Friday night is 7:30 p.m. (Eastern Time).