POSEN — A dominant first half performance propelled North Central football to a 54-20 MHSAA 8-Player Division 2 Regional semifinal victory against Posen on Saturday.

The Jets put up 18 points in the first half behind 33-yard and 1-yard touchdown runs from quarterback Jacob Gorzinski. The senior also connected with Kaden Malone for a 21-yard scoring pass for an 18-8 lead through the opening 12 minutes.

Gorzinski continued to wreak havoc on the Vikings defense. The Jets QB dashed 21 yards for a rushing touchdown, found Evan Hanchek for a 9-yard scoring pass and found Hunter Robinson for a 3-yard aerial score. With a pick-6 from Aidyn Burton added to the mix the Jets carried a 46-8 lead at intermission.

Nate Pipkorn earned a 2-yard touchdown run to close NC’s offensive dominance.

The Jets totaled four turnovers on defense. Along with Burton’s pick-6 came a fumble recovery from Austin Fraley to close the first half. Robinson and Gorzinksi earned interceptions on the Vikings first two possessions of the second half.

The Jets finished with 434 yards of offense while holding Posen to 284. NC finished 3-of-6 on third down and 2-of-3 on third down while racking up 327 rushing yards. The Vikings churned 206 rushing yards while finishing 0-of-6 on third down and 2-of-4 on fourth down despite possessing the ball for 36 minutes.

Gorzinski finished with 190 yards and three touchdowns off 20 carries and finished 11-of-15 for 115 yards and three scores through the air.

Malone finished with 108 total yards (64 rushing, 44 receiving) off five carries and four catches. Nate Pipkorn finished 3-of-4 passing and netted 40 yards off six carries.

Burton led the Jets with eight total tackles and earned a tackle for loss. Spencer Willa totaled four tackles and two tackles for loss.

North Central travels to face Lake Linden-Hubbell in the Regional finals with a time and date to be announced at time of publication. The regional title game will be a rematch of a Week 5 matchup that saw the Lakes defeat the Jets 28-25, snapping North Central’s 41-game winning streak.