WARNER – The method was a bit different than normal, but the results were still the same for the Warner Monarchs Thursday night.

A team known for its potent ground game, Warner took things to the air to help set the tone in a 37-8 win over Philip in the quarterfinals of the Class 9A football playoffs at Bank North/Dial-A-Move Field.

Warner quarterback Drew Bakeberg had his choice of receivers throughout the night and took advantage of them.

“It was kind of the game plan. We were going to go in and throw the ball,” said Warner coach Derek Hoellein. “They played man coverage, tight man coverage. We worked on it all week, hitting his back foot and letting it rip, and letting those guys make plays.”

The Monarchs, who improved 10-0 on the season, were without standout Jesiah Baum who is in concussion protocol according to Hoellein, and that factored into the game plan as well.

“We knew going in tonight that we weren’t going to have him,” Hoellein said, “so we tweaked some things. That’s why we threw the ball a little bit more.”

Bakeberg had a big evening throwing for 244 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

“We repped that all week,” Hoellein said. “We were ready for it, and the line did a nice job, gave him some time, and he put it right on ‘em.”

Bakeberg was looking forward to the matchup, knowing that he would have opportunities against the Philip defense.

“It’s like backyard football. They ran a man-to-man and I knew when they ran a man-to-man I was going to throw the ball a lot this week,” Bakeberg said. “I knew my receivers were going to catch the ball, even with ‘Siah out, I knew my receivers were still going to catch the ball. I have all the trust in my receivers.”

Bakeberg fired a 35-yard strike to Alec Mikkelsen for one touchdown, and later tossed a 19-yard pass to Payton Volk for another TD.

Volk, who had 97 yards receiving, also had a big night on the ground, rushing for a pair of touchdowns, including a 60-yard scoring run in the third quarter.

Devon Fischbach added a rushing touchdown for Warner’s other second-half touchdown.

Meanwhile, the Monarchs were up to their usual standard on defense, stuffing the run, and pressuring the quarterback. Led by seniors Hunter Robinson and Kaden Sauer, who each had a sack, Warner made moving the ball difficult for the Scotties.

“Going into it we thought they were going to run it a lot, but we’d just like to thank our coaches,” said Robinson, who led the Monarchs with seven tackles. “They set up a great game plan all week, all season really. I’d like to thank our D-line. They’ve been anchors all year.”

Fischbach added a pair of interceptions for Warner, and Volk contributed five tackles.

The Monarchs set the tone early against Philip on both offense and defense. Robinson talked about the start of the contest.

“We just had to get off the jump,” Robinson said. “Last week we let (Gavyille-Volin) get going a little bit. This week we showed them its our house right away.”

Warner has yet to lose a home game since turf was installed. The Monarchs have now won 22 straight games, and 33 of their last 34.

That winning streak will be put to the test next week when Warner heads to unbeaten Howard in the semifinals. The Tigers have been the top-rated team in 9A the entire season.

“It’s going to be a fight. Four quarters. It’s not going to be a blow out at all,” Robinson said. “It’s going to be a full four quarters. Depth is going to show.”

It will be the only time this season that the Monarchs will be considered an underdog, but that’s fine with Bakeberg.

“I’d rather be an underdog,” Bakeberg said. “Being an underdog is very, very fun.”

When asked what it will take to win that contest, Bakeberg responded, “Grit and good preparation this week from our scouts, our coaches, from our starters, from the whole kit and kaboodle.”

Hoellein said the contest will likely come down to the battle on the line of scrimmage.

“We’ve got to stop the run. They don’t throw the ball, from what I’ve seen, a lot,” Hoellein said. “They lean on their big guys, kind of like we do. It’s going to be battle of the trenches for sure.”

Philip (7-3) 0 0 0 8 – 8

Warner (10-0) 14 9 14 0 – 37

W – Payton Volk 3 run.

W – Alec Mikkelsen 35 pass from Drew Bakeberg (Chays Mansfield pass from Bakeberg).

W – Mikkelsen 27 field goal.

W – Volk 19 pass from Bakeberg.

W – Volk 56 run (Mikkelsen kick).

W – Devon Fischbach 30 run (Mikkelsen kick).

P – Teagan Gropper 69 pass from Talan Haynes (Haynes run).

OFFENSE: Philip, passing 3-6 for 79 (Haynes 3-6 for 79), receiving (Gropper 3-79), first downs 3; Warner, rushing (Volk 14-120, Fischbach 10-64), passing 15-21 for 244 (Bakeberg 15-21 for 244), receiving (Volk 6-97, Mikkelsen 3-76), first downs 15.

DEFENSE: Philip, team effort; Warner, Hunter Robinson 6 tackles, Mansfield 5 tackles, Volk 5 tackles, Fischbach 2 interceptions.