EAGLE - The first foray into the playoffs since 2004 for Post Falls High didn't produce a victory but did leave an indelible mark about the team's propensity to battle and fight.

The Trojans made Eagle High work hard for Friday's 35-21 victory in the opening round of the state 5A football playoffs. A tying touchdown in the fourth quarter was called back due to a penalty and the Mustangs tacked on a late score.

"It's a good first step for our program but obviously we wanted to come down here and win," Post Falls coach Jeff Hinz said. "We did give Eagle everything we've got but we wanted to get the win in the end. That was what we were trying to accomplish."

The Mustangs (9-1) advance to face Highland (9-0) in the quarterfinals. The Trojans finish 5-5 after putting a scare into Eagle.

Post Falls trailed 28-21 in the fourth quarter and faced a fourth-and-six situation from midfield. The Trojans lined up in punt formation but the ball was snapped to up-back Kayden Nelson, who raced 27 yards to the Eagle 23-yard line.

Later on the drive, Post Falls faced fourth-and-six from the 8 and originally sent out the field-goal team before calling timeout and reinserting the offense. Dalton Thompson bought time trying to find an open receiver and connected with Zach Hillman, but an illegal man downfield penalty negated the score.

"We drove it down there toward the end there and had the touchdown called back and just couldn't recover from that," Hinz said. "Some key penalties at some key times. Our kids fought to the bitter end and I'm proud of them for fighting all the way through."

After the missed opportunity, Post Falls was unable to get a key stop - a personal foul penalty was particularly costly - and the Mustangs put the game away on Hunter Floyd's 9-yard keeper with 57 seconds left.

Failing to record a playoff victory was disappointing to junior running back Austin Jackson, who rushed for 103 yards and two touchdowns.

"We had our ups and downs," Jackson said. "They're a good team, we're a good team and unfortunately we didn't come out on top this time. It's kind of a shame to see these seniors come this far and not make it."

The Trojans trailed 21-14 at halftime but opened the third quarter by moving 78 yards in 10 plays. The touchdown came on a 26-yard keeper by Thompson as the middle of the Eagle defense was wide open and Thompson cruised to the end zone.

The Mustangs answered with a six-play, 65-yard drive and took the lead on Floyd's 4-yard pass to James Hull midway through the third quarter. Then came the fateful fourth quarter in which opportunities were missed and the painful end of a campaign began to set in.

"Mistakes killed us," Jackson said. "I'm not going to call anyone out. It takes a team to win a game, it takes a team to lose a game."

The beginning of the contest belonged to Eagle as the Mustangs rolled to touchdowns the first two times it had the ball.

Josh Labrador scored on a 1-yard run to cap a game-opening nine-play, 72-yard drive. After Eagle forced a three-and-out, it needed just two plays for its second touchdown as Floyd teamed up on a 31-yard scoring pass to Kam Lane midway through the first quarter.

Post Falls finally got on the board with 42 seconds left in the opening stanza when Jackson culminated a nine-play, 65-yard drive with a 1-yard run. Jackson gained 45 yards on the drive, including a 31-yard burst to start it off.

The Mustangs increased their lead to 21-7 on Bucky Schrader's 1-yard run with 7:18 left in the first half. The Trojans faced a fourth-and-9 on their ensuing drive and Thompson lofted a 25-yard completion to Nelson to the 11 and Post Falls scored four plays later on Jackson's 1-yard run with 2:21 remaining.

Post Falls 7 7 7 0 - 21

Eagle 14 7 7 7 - 35

First Quarter

E - Josh Labrador 1 run (Joey Klucewich kick), 8:24

E - Kam Lane 31 pass from Hunter Floyd (Klucewich kick), 6:25

PF - Austin Jackson 1 run (Nathan Gregory kick), :42

Second Quarter

E - Bucky Schrader 1 run (Klucewich kick), 7:18

PF - Austin Jackson 1 run (Gregory kick), 2:21

Third Quarter

PF - Dalton Thompson 26 run (Gregory kick), 7:04

E - James Hull 4 pass from Floyd (Klucewich kick), 5:27

Fourth Quarter

E - Floyd 9 run (Klucewich kick), :57

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING - PF, Jackson 25-103, Thompson 12-55, Nelson 1-27, Bailey 2-6. Eagle, Schrader 19-110, Floyd 10-100, Labrador 5-20, Nyce 2-16, Buich 2-9.

PASSING: PF, Thompson 10-20-0-121. Eagle, Floyd 6-11-0-161.

RECEIVING: PF, Hillman 3-53, Nelson 2-35, Jackson 2-13, Gregory 1-9, Gering 1-6, Welker 1-5. Eagle, Hull 3-27, Walker 1-85, Lane 1-31, Schrader 1-18.