Last week the Grand Lake Hornets held off district rival Oberlin to advance to the Class 1A quarterfinals.

Tonight, perennial power and 17-time state champion Haynesville will visit as the Hornets look to take the next step in returning to the state championship game.

The No. 3 Hornets (10-1) are on a four-game winning streak after last week’s 13-7 win. No. 6 Haynesville (7-4) advanced with a 48-13 win over Lincoln Prep.

Grand Lake head coach Jeff Wainwright said the Hornets did enough on each side of the ball to win last week.

“The biggest part was our defense coming up with some big stops at the end of the game,” he said. “Our offense did a good job of controlling the second half. We kind of stalled on a couple of drives and didn’t get any points out of it, but we were able to pick up some big first downs.

“Playing good defense and running the ball with good efficiency was key to the win.”

Kobe Cionek ran for 89 yards and a touchdown to lead the Grand Lake offense last week. He has 195 yards and three touchdowns in the last two games. Ian Vigo returned after missing three games with injury and added 49 yards on 10 carries.

Wainwright said the Golden Tornado bring a mix of size and speed. Fullback Toby Franklin ran for 162 yards and a touchdown last week. Alonzo Jackson scored a rushing touchdown and on a fumble return.

“They have good team speed in their secondary and linebacker corps, and good size on the interior defensive line,” he said. “They play good defense and have been running the wing-T offense for years. They do a good job with their motions and counter sweeps. If you are not disciplined as a defender you can get caught watching the fakes and have trouble finding the ball.

“Our guys will have to be disciplined and understand their roles and what they are asked to do in our defense.

“We have to worry about the things we have to do and look up at the scoreboard at the end. For us, it is about being disciplined and doing the things we have to do in our schemes to be successful.”

Wainwright said the Hornets are in good health after dealing with multiple injuries in the second half of the regular season.

“We’re doing real good,” he said. “We didn’t have any injuries (last week) and some of the guys are feeling better this week.”