Mountaineer offensive lineman Marcus Verrette (78), far right, and the rest of the line form a protective wall during a first half play in the MHSAA Division 8 playoff clash with visiting Bark River-Harris on Friday night a cold and rainy Mountaineer Stadium. The Mountaineers won the contest 32-16 to advance in the state playoffs. (Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — When Iron Mountain hosted Bark River-Harris in the fifth week of the regular season this year, the Mountaineers had their way with the Broncos in a 37-point win.

Six weeks later, the teams met again on Friday night with much more at stake. A Division 8 district championship and a berth in the regionals was on the line and the Broncos proved to be a much stouter opponent, but in the end, the Mountaineers emerged with a 32-16 triumph at a rainy, cold Mountaineer Stadium.

With their 10th consecutive win, the Mountaineers moved into the regional round to host Evart (10-1). Time and date have not been determined as of Sunday. The Broncos closed their season with an 8-3 mark.

Luke Wolfe ran for two touchdowns and caught another to spark Iron Mountain to the victory.

“I feel like they got a lot better since last game and we got better,” Wolfe said. “The rain hurt our pass game a little bit, which is a strength, but both teams played good.”

Iron Mountain quarterback Joe Colavecchi (2) barks out a call to his teammates during the first half of the MHSAA Division 8 11-player football playoff matchup with Bark River-Harris at Mountaineer Stadium on Friday night. (Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo)

While there may have been some in the Mountaineer community who thought the game would be a repeat of the regular-season matchup, IM coach Robin Marttila was not one of those.

“We expected a real good game out of Bark River,” Marttila said. “We understand their kids are tough, their coach has been around the block, they have a good system, they’re a good football program and they’re in the playoffs every year.

“But we responded. We made enough plays to get the job done. You get to the second week of the playoffs, life isn’t going to be any easier. That’s the way it goes and that’s probably the way it should be.”

The game started out looking like the second matchup would proceed like the first. At the 8:09 mark of the opening quarter, Wolfe hauled in a 47-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Joe Colavecchi on a wheel route to put the Mountaineers up quickly.

About four minutes later, Iron Mountain junior Connor Owens forced a BR-H fumble near midfield. Three players after the turnover, the Mountaineers went up 14-0 after Wolfe’s 18-yard scamper.

Iron Mountain running back Luke Wolfe (11) looks for running room against Bark River-Harris in the MHSAA Division 8 playoff matchup between the visiting Broncos and host Mountaineers at Mountaineer Stadium on Friday night. The players not only had to fight each other but also Mother Nature, with the game featuring a near constant rain and chilly temperatures. (Daily News photo)

Then on the second play of the Broncos’ ensuing possession, Colavecchi intercepted a tipped pass and returned it to the BR-H 13-yard line.

The Broncos held IM out of the endzone, but Mountaineer senior Bradon Farragh booted a 27-yard field goal to give his team a 17-0 lead heading into the second quarter.

Holding IM to a field goal seemed to inspire the Broncos, who rebounded with a 15-play, 75-yard touchdown march, finished off by standout senior running back Vincent Martin’s 9-yard run.

Martin finished the game with 185 yards rushing on 32 carries.

“(He’s) a very good football player and we knew that coming in,” Marttila said. “He’s the conference player of the year over there. Once he gets a head of steam going , he’s tough to bring down.”

Mountaineer defender Colin Schneider (50) chases after Bronco quarterback Ethan Ives (6) during Iron Mountain’s 32-16 playoff win on Friday. (Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo)

“He’s got an explosive burst and you can’t tackle him,” BR-H coach Al Stenberg said. “He’s smooth and calm in traffic and people slip right off of him.”

With their lead sliced to nine after the Broncos’ 2-point run by quarterback Ethan Ives, the Mountaineers took just six players to push their lead to 25-8. On the third play of the drive, Colavecchi hit cousin Matthew with a 24-yard pass down to the BR-H 11-yard line. Three players later, Farragh plowed in from the 1 to give IM a three-score lead at the break.

With its array of weapons and balanced offense, IM is a tough team to corral, Stenberg said.

“It is a tremendous challenge,” Stenberg began. “They play both styles of football — the tight Wing-T and (I formation) really well, but when they spread you out with those athletes, they’re just unparalleled right now in the U.P. in my opinion. The quarterback throws a heck of a good ball, they’ve got good height and they run crisp routes. And they’re fast.”

The teams exchanged punts to begin the third quarter before the Broncos crept closer when Ives hit Charlie Guenette on a 6-yard pass. Martin ran in for the 2-point conversion and with 2:12 to play in the third quarter, BR-H trailed just 25-16.

The Broncos made things nervy for the Mountaineers when they opened the fourth quarter by driving the ball from their own 15 to the IM 49-yard line. But a fumbled snap killed the drive and the Mountaineers put the game away seven plays later on a beautifully executed 19-yard pass from Joe Colavecchi to Wolfe, who was wide open in the end zone after the run fake.

“I think they thought we were trying to run out the clock and Coach called a great play and it worked out good,” Wolfe said.

Colavecchi finished 6 for 9 for 134 yards and two touchdowns. In addition to his three touchdowns, Wolfe led his team with 86 yards rushing on 13 carries.

Bradon Walstrom topped IM’s defense with nine solo tackles, while Owens recorded two sacks. Both Colin Schneider and Fulton Stroud recovered a BR-H fumble to go with interceptions from Wolfe and Joe Colavecchi.

In the end, Stenberg felt his troops played well and courageously in defeat.

“We’re happy with the way the kids played tonight,” Stenberg said. “We got completely annihilated up here during the regular season, but we knew we were a better football team than that.

“And we had our shots tonight. We had some long drives and we broke some runs, but we just couldn’t put together the perfect game. The turnovers hurt and we allowed a couple big plays and you can’t do that in a championship game. So, hats off to Iron Mountain and ‘U.P. Power.'”

For the Mountaineers, it’s another week of preparation, but also a chance to enjoy their latest district championship.

“It was a good night,” Marttila said. “If you can play football into late November, your kids are making memories and they’re getting it done. So, we’re going to enjoy this one tonight and go on to next week.”