Senior linebacker Conor Tully and the Oswego defense felt confident in their ability to stop the run during Saturday’s Class 8A second-round playoff game against Lane.

That confidence wasn’t misplaced. Tully and the Panthers limited the Champions to just eight rushing yards in the first half.

With the ground game under control, Oswego stifled the Lane passing attack in the second half, where defensive backs Devin Mata and Quinten Jackson Jr. each snagged interceptions, with Jackson Jr. running his back 70 yards for a touchdown near the end of the fourth quarter.

The Panthers, who finished with four sacks and blocked two punts, shut out Lane in the second half to beat the Champions 45-10 and reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2017.

“We knew from the first half that we could stop the run,” said Tully, who had one sack. “That’s what we do on this defense. We stop the run and make you work through your quarterback. We emphasized stopping their deep, long passes in the second half and that’s what helped us shut them down.”

Oswego (9-2) outscored Lane (9-2) 35-0 in the second half. But the Champions were the first to strike, taking a 7-0 lead after a stellar 18-yard touchdown reception by wide receiver Taylor Clay early in the first quarter. The Panthers responded on the ground, tying the game on a 4-yard outside touchdown run by sophomore Ammar Banire, who led Oswego with 104 rushing yards.

“Our focus in this game was to keep running,” Banire said. “We run the ball hard and we’re physical. I felt free and my teammates were hyping me up before the game. I really believed in myself and my mentors always tell me to have confidence in myself. That’s really important to me.”

A blocked punt deep inside Lane territory led to a 42-yard field goal for Oswego’s Kaleb Stumpenhorst, who drilled the long kick to give the Panthers their first lead of the game.

After Tully and teammate Caden Cooney united for a sack on Lane quarterback Blake Perkins, the Champions punted the ball away, but an interception by Lane defensive back Aiden Boywid set the Champions up near the Oswego red zone early in the second quarter.

Lane kicker Atticus Whitted converted a 21-yard chip-shot field goal to even the score at 10-10, which stood at halftime. While the Champions were held to eight rushing yards in the first half, Oswego mustered only 22 passing yards.

Needing a spark on offense, the Panthers drove the ball 95 yards on their first series of the third quarter, capitalizing on a well-thrown 56-yard deep pass from quarterback Drew Kleinhans to wide receiver Teddy Manikas.

“We were able to change our formation up a bit and run the ball,” Kleinhans said. “That’s how it’s been for us all season. When we’re able to run the ball, big shots come out and we saw a mismatch with Teddy, so we attacked that guy... It’s a huge confidence builder because there’s been so much doubt and we were down last week, but there’s never a time where we give up.”

Kleinhans threw for 149 yards and two touchdowns for the Panthers, who capped off their 95-yard drive and went ahead 17-10 on Banire’s 9-yard scoring run. Oswego held Lane to minus-3 yards on the first two Champion drives of the second half. Big plays from defensive end Ethan Pilip, who had a sack and a tackle for loss in the third quarter, aided the Panther defense.

“We adjusted very well and we worked on our fundamental stuff,” Pilip said. “Our goal was to keep them to zero... This is really big win for us.”

Another deep ball from Kleinhans to Manikas resulted in 35-yard touchdown that helped Oswego take a 24-10 lead late in the third quarter. After both teams traded interceptions, the Panthers surged ahead early in the fourth quarter, when Kleinhans fired an 18-yard touchdown strike over the middle to wide receiver Mariano Velasco. A second blocked punt, this time by Pilip, preceded a 5-yard Dekker Zelensek touchdown run with 5:25 left to play.

Jackson Jr.’s pick-six was the exclamation point for the Panthers, who will face Maine South in the 8A quarterfinals next weekend.

Manikas led the Oswego receiving corps with 92 yards on three catches, while Kleinhans and Zelensek combined for 67 yards on the ground. Perkins totaled 142 passing yards for the Champions, who ended the game with just 14 rushing yards.