Going into their Class 3A football semifinal game, all Chris Jones and his Windsor Wizards wanted was five more days together — four more practices and one more game.

Not only did the Wizards earn those five more days, they added three big plays and one monumental win to the equation.

After a defensive-minded first half, Windsor converted a trio of game-changing plays into game-winning touchdowns, blowing past Frederick 19-0 in the semifinals at H.J. Dudley Field on Saturday.

With the win, the fifth-seeded Wizards are back in the state finals for the first time since 1993. With hopes of securing its third title in program history, Windsor will travel to Legacy Stadium at Cherokee Trail High School in Aurora this Saturday where it will face the high-powered aerial attack of third-seeded Silver Creek (12-1).

“It might sound corny but we just get to spend five more days with these guys, and any coach in America will tell you the more time you get to spend with your kids, the more memories you get to create,” Wizards coach Chris Jones said. “They’re a great group of kids.”

Though Windsor was only three weeks removed from a 40-0 regular season win against Frederick (9-4), the 16th-seeded Warriors had assumed a completely different identity the last couple weeks, securing a pair of defensive-minded playoff wins against top-seed Canon City and eighth-seed D’Evelyn.

For much of Saturday’s game, it appeared Frederick may continue its trend of keeping the game close enough to seize the win late against a more ballyhooed opponent.

Despite the Wizards holding a 114-76 advantage in offensive yards in the first half, neither team had a point at halftime as Windsor struggled to capitalize on frequently ideal field position.

The Warriors were on the verge of capitalizing on ideal field position of its own after recovering a Wizards fumble on the Windsor 45-yard line.

A KC Rivera 36-yard catch on a crossing pattern set Frederick up with first-and-goal at the Wizards’ 8.

Three plays later, on fourth-and-goal at the 1, the Warriors had a chance to punch the ball into the end zone and break the deadlock. Frederick squandered the opportunity with back-to-back false start penalties, moving the ball back to the 11.

Frederick kicker Kevin Retchless missed the 28-yard field goal attempt, handing the ball back to Windsor on the Warriors’ 20. Three plays later, on third-and-seven, Wizards junior quarterback Joe Sanger rolled out to the left sideline and found senior wingback Aaron Schmidt, who beat Frederick corner back Michael Broz for a 77-yard touchdown catch.

“We knew that we had a shot — we were tied and that touchdown was huge,” Schmidt said. “It gave us tons of momentum.”

Once Windsor had the momentum, and the lead, the Wizards had no attention of giving either back.

Windsor allowed Frederick just 53 total yards in the second half, including just 11 rushing yards on 14 carries.

“We had to do everything we could to slow down their run, plus our coverage on the pass was great,” said Wizards senior corner back Loren Kammerzell, who had a pair of tackles and an interception.

While the Warriors’ normally effective running game continued to stall, the Wizards’ triple-option attack began to find its rhythm.

Windsor finished with 378 total yards, including 187 rushing yards and 77 passing yards in the second half.

Schmidt capped the win with an 11-yard burst into the end zone with 2:11 left in the game, but not before junior running back Jordan Porterfield gave the Wizards all the separation they needed with an 81-yard touchdown run to put Windsor up 13-0 with 3:06 left in the third.

With Frederick still well within striking distance, Porterfield dashed the Warriors’ hopes for a late-game comeback, taking a pitch from Sanger, breaking a tackle, then finding plenty of daylight along the right sideline.

“It was just a good feeling to know my team was behind me; without their blocking, I wouldn’t have had that touchdown,” said Porterfield, who had a game-high 105 yards on just 14 carries. “We had pretty much a clear shot down the sideline. There was one guy to beat, a safety coming over the top. We were able to get the blocks. Joe read it perfectly, got the pitch out, and I just ran.”

FHS 0 0 0 0 — 0

WHS 0 0 7 12 — 19

Third quarter

WHS — Aaron Schmidt 77 pass from Joe Sanger (Neal Elens), 8:39. Drive: 4 plays, 80 yards, :55. Windsor 7, Frederick 0.

WHS — Jordan Porterfield 81 run (pass failed), 3:06. Drive: 3 plays, 80 yards, 1:53. Windsor 13, Frederick 0.

Fourth quarter

WHS — Schmidt 11 run (Elens kick blocked), 2:11. Drive: 4 plays, 17 yards, :33. Windsor 19, Frederick 0.

Team statistics

FHS WHS

First downs 3 15

Rushes-yards 31-87 61-295

Passing 42 83

Comp-Att-Int 2-16-2 2-6-0

Sacked-yards lost 2-5 0-0

Punts-Avg. 8-43.6 4-27.5

Fumbles-lost 1-1 4-2

Penalties-yards 9-85 6-51

Individual leaders

Rushing — FHS, KC Rivera 8-56, Jaron Balman 9-25. WHS, Jordan Porterfield 14-105 (TD), Joe Sanger 22-55, Vince Hooley 6-53, Wil Dressor 10-47, Aaron Schmidt 9-35 (TD).

Passing — FHS, Balman 2-16-2-42. WHS, Sanger 2-6-0-83 (TD).

Receiving — FHS, Rivera 1-36, Dalton Hall 1-6. WHS, Schmidt 1-77 (TD), Tanner Wiemers 1-6.

Extra points » Turning point: In the blink of an eye, Windsor senior wingback Aaron Schmidt completely changed the complexion of the game, blowing past Frederick sophomore cornerback Michael Broz along the left sideline for an 77-yard touchdown catch from junior quarterback Joe Sanger to put the Wizards up 7-0 with 8 minutes, 39 seconds left in the third quarter. Neither team had any kind of offensive momentum before that play. Windsor had all the momentum after it. » Best Individual performer: Though the Windsor defense deserves a lion’s share of credit for keeping Frederick’s normally potent running game at bay, Schmidt made sure the Wizards’ dominant defensive performance wasn’t for naught. He produced the aforementioned first touchdown of the game and the last one — an 11-yard run in the fourth — with a Jordan Porterfield 81-yard touchdown run in the third quarter sandwiched in between. Schmidt had 112 total yards from scrimmage. » Key numbers: Aside from a 42-yard run by Frederick junior KC Rivera, the Warriors had just 45 rushing yards on 30 carries, for a 1.5 yard per carry average. Frederick entered the game averaging 5.5 yards per carry and 224.2 rushing yards per game. ... Rivera also had the bulk of the Warriors’ receiving yards, catching one ball for 36 yards as Frederick junior quarterback Jaron Balman completed just two passes for 42 yards. ... Meanwhile, Windsor had five players each record at least six carries and 35 yards, led by junior Jordan Porterfield, who had 105 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. ... Frederick had just three first downs, moving the chains for the first time on the second play of the second quarter, a 14-yard play-action keeper by Balman on third-and-12 from his own 18. » What it means: With the win, Windsor is back in the state finals for the fourth time in program history, the first since 1993. The Wizards have claimed titles in two of their three previous trips, winning in 1981 and 1993 and placing second in 1959. Winning a third state title will be no easy task for fifth-seeded Windsor (12-1), which will travel to Legacy Stadium in Aurora this Saturday to face No. 3 Silver Creek (12-1). Led by senior quarterback Austin Apodaca, the Raptors may have the best passing game in the state, regardless of classification. Silver Creek advanced to the finals with a 55-37 semifinals win on Saturday against Palisade. The Raptors beat the Wizards 41-21 during the regular season with Apodaca completing 18-of-30 passes for 322 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Bobby Fernandez