The Heidelberg Oilers blew open what was a two-score game at halftime to cruise to a 34-14 win over the Loyd Star Hornets Friday night in the opening round of the MHSAA 2A playoffs.

The Oilers (6-5) used their explosive senior quarterback Dontavious Porter to wear down an injury-depleted Loyd Star (4-6) roster. The Hornets were missing their Mr. Everything senior running back Patrick Price after losing him to a season ending injury last week.

Price wasn’t the only injured Hornet starter, though. In-game bumps and bruises had the Hornets missing several starters on most defensive series.

First-year Hornet coach Brian Ford was proud of the grit that his defense showed as they dealt with the adversity of a shuffled lineup.

“I felt like at times tonight we did a really good job with our defensive backfield, especially since we had guys that had to move around due to injuries. We just needed a little more of a push up front,” said Ford.

Heidelberg led 16-0 at halftime and now moves on to a second-round matchup with Collins.

“I appreciated our guys’ effort, I thought we never quit and I’m proud of that,” said Ford. “We’ve got 12 juniors that will return to lead us next year and it will be important for them to be our leaders in the weight room and over the spring and summer as we try to build off of this season.”