For the second straight year, Clarkston junior running back Griffin Boman had the heroic plays in a district matchup against Lake Orion as the the Wolves knocked their OAA Red rivals out in the first round of the MHSAA 2024 state high school playoffs.

But unlike his late heroics with a game-winning touchdown and interception in a 2023 district final rally, Boman set the tone early with two long touchdown runs in the first half en route to a 34-16 win on the road for Clarkston over Lake Orion in the first round of the Division 1 playoffs.

On the first possession, he bounced through a big hole on the right side for a 54-yard touchdown, then finished the first half by slicing through a host of tackle attempts for a powerful 58-yard rumble to the end zone.

FOLLOW ALONG: Michigan high school football playoffs 2024: Live scores from MHSAA first round

Griffin and his brother, Lukas, handled the bulk of Clarkston's touches out of the backfield; the junior twins combined for four touchdowns, three on the ground from Griffin and one receiving from Lukas, to build a 28-10 lead that proved insurmountable. The Boman brothers were explosive out of the backfield with three touchdowns over 50 yards.

The Wolves avenged a 20-13 loss to the Dragons in Week 7 to keep their season alive, while Lake Orion finishes at 6-4. Clarkston advances to play Rochester Adams, which beat Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, 44-14, in the district finals. Rochester Adams beat Clarkston, 28-10, in the regular season.

Griffin Boman's 3-TD half gives Clarkston early lead

Griffin Boman broke free for a 51-yard touchdown on the opening possession to give Clarkston a 7-0 lead in three minutes. After Lukas Boman picked up a pair of first downs, including a fourth-down conversion, Griffin Boman took a shotgun handoff, shot through a big hole in the right side of the line and outran the last line of the secondary. Griffin Boman added a second touchdown from six yards after Clarkston was set up with a short field on a fumble.

Lake Orion responded with a shot over the top. On third-and-7 from its own 21, senior quarterback TR Hill aired it over 30 yards to senior receiver Kyle England, who broke free from the defender over the middle for a 77-yard touchdown to cut Clarkston's lead to 14-7. Lake Orion's defense got off the field on its own 14 by stuffing a third-down run and knocking down an end-zone shot on fourth down. The Dragons drove to Clarkston's 8 at the end of the second quarter, but had two incompletions and a sack and had to settle for a 28-yard field goal from Will Hoffman.

Clarkston got it back with less than 20 seconds and went 71 yards in three plays to take a 21-10 lead into half. Griffin Boman ripped off 21 yards to Lake Orion's 48, followed by a sack that forced a timeout with two seconds. He got the ball again from his own 42, got to the second level up the middle, broke a tackle, bounced left and ran through a handful of defenders for a 58-yard touchdown as time expired. Griffin Boman had seven carries for 145 yards and three touchdowns in the first half.

MICK McCABE: Michigan high school football 2024: Predictions for every first round playoff game

Clarkston hits deep shot through air, Lake Orion responds

Clarkston forced a punt and then connected on a deep shot to start the second half. After getting the ball back quickly, quarterback Alex Waszczenko faked a handoff then lofted a deep shot to a wide-open Lukas Boman down the seam for a 54-yard touchdown to make it 27-10.

Lake Orion responded with an 80-yard touchdown drive in which Hill completed six passes for 58 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown to Jahmari Cooper in the back of the end zone to cut it to 27-16. The Wolves were on the verge of scoring again after reaching the end zone on a roughing the kicker penalty, but Waszczenko fumbled on a quarterback run and Lake Orion senior linebacker Payton McIntyre recovered. But Lake Orion couldn't move the ball and gave it back at its own 17 after a turnover on downs. Clarkston nearly burned off the remaining clock before Waszczenko punched in a 1-yard touchdown on a quarterback sneak.

Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Follow Jared on X @jared_ramsey22, and email him at jramsey@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: MHSAA football playoffs Clarkston stops Lake Orion, 34-16, in Round 1