Eden Prairie capitalizes on miscues vs. Lakeville North

The last time Eden Prairie's D.J. Johnson scored a touchdown was one year ago, in the Class 6A state quarterfinals, on the Chanhassen High School field.

Given similar circumstances Thursday, Johnson allowed himself to dream a little.

The senior running back/defensive back made the most influential play of the game, returning a fumble 97 yards for a first-quarter touchdown, sparking the Eagles to a 35-0 victory over Lakeville North.

"Going back to last year, the same thing happened. I brought one back the other way," Johnson said. "Before the game I said this is my lucky field. I'm going to do it again."

Eden Prairie (11-0) was leading 7-0 at the time, staked to an early lead when running back Solo Falaniko bounced off a pair of Panthers defenders and raced 50 yards for a touchdown on the Eagles' fourth play from scrimmage.

After the two teams traded punts, Lakeville North mounted a drive that reached the Eden Prairie 3-yard line, setting up Johnson's game-changing return.

Eden Prairie's heart and soul, Antonio Montero, laid the hit that forced the fumble.

Instead of a tie game, Eden Prairie led 14-0 and Lakeville North's momentum was ebbing. It completely drained away when the Panthers fumbled on their next possession, also in Eden Prairie territory.

"You can't make those mistakes," Lakeville North coach Brian Vossen said. "You have to tackle better, you have to take care of the football. We didn't do either."

Eden Prairie effectively salted the game away with a 1-yard touchdown run by Montero with 31.3 seconds left in the first half, for a 21-0 lead at halftime.