Game highlights: Wega-Fremont, Manawa, Waupaca, New London, Clintonville, Iola-Scandy
By Greg Seubert
Wins are quickly adding up for the Weyauwega-Fremont football team.
After opening the season with nonconference wins over Belleville and Rosholt, the Warhawks opened Central Wisconsin Conference-Large play Sept. 1 with a 50-7 win over Manawa.
At first, it looked like the Warhawks and Wolves would give fans a close game. Neither team scored in the first quarter and Weyauwega-Fremont led 13-7 at halftime.
However, the Warhawks pulled away in the second half by scoring five touchdowns and keeping the Wolves out of the end zone.
Dakota Stroud’s 11-yard pass to Nathan Gorman in the second quarter gave Manawa the lead, but it turned out to be the only score for the home team.
Kameron Zielke threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Broc Billington and Brayden Arndt added a 60-yard touchdown run before halftime.
Zielke added to the Warhawks’ lead in the third quarter with touchdown runs of 11 and 1 yard.
Zielke added a 24-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter and threw a 4-yard scoring pass to Chris Gunst before Billington wrapped up the scoring with a 39-yard run.
Zielke led the Warhawks with 158 rushing yards and completed nine of 18 passes for 90 yards.
Central Wisconsin Conference Large results: Sept. 1: Weyauwega-Fremont 50, Manawa 7; Stratford 33, Amherst 13; Wittenberg-Birnamwood 47, Nekoosa 0; Shiocton 7, Spencer/Columbus Catholic 0. Sept. 8 schedule: Weyauwega-Fremont at Nekoosa, 7 p.m.; Manawa at Stratford, 7 p.m.; Amherst at Shiocton, 7 p.m.; Spencer/Columbus Catholic at Wittenberg-Birnamwood, 7 p.m.
Greg Seubert’s football roundup
Pittman runs wild in Denmark
It was a night to remember for Xzaver Pittman and a night to forget for the Denmark Vikings.
The Waupaca junior ran for 306 yards and six rushing touchdowns Sept. 1 in the Comets’ 50-14 nonconference win over the Vikings.
Meanwhile, New London fell to 1-2 on the season with a 48-0 loss to Luxemburg-Casco in Luxemburg.
Waupaca 50, Denmark 14
The Comets and Vikings combined for four touchdowns in the first quarter alone.
Steven Kielpikowski’s 75-yard return of the opening kickoff and his 5-yard touchdown run on the game’s first play gave Denmark a 7-0 lead less than a minute into the game.
Pittman scored the first of his six touchdowns from 35 yards out to cap the Comets’ opening drive.
Owen Hansen recovered quarterback Thomas Bienapfl’s fumble to end Denmark’s next drive and Pittman scored on a 15-yard run to give Waupaca the lead for good.
Garrett Taicher’s 61-yard touchdown run cut Waupaca’s lead to 15-14, but Denmark never scored again.
A bad snap on a punt attempt gave Waupaca the ball at Denmark’s 15-yard line in the second quarter and Pittman found the end zone on the next play for his third touchdown.
After a Denmark punt, the Comets took over at their own 19-yard line and Pittman scored on the first play of the drive to give Waupaca a 29-14 lead.
The Comets weren’t finished in the first half, as Ethan Harms connected with Aaron Wolff for a 34-yard touchdown pass that gave Waupaca a 36-14 lead at the break.
Pittman added touchdown runs of 88 yards in the third quarter and 10 yards in the fourth quarter.
Waupaca outgained the Vikings 339-150 on the ground and 131-18 through the air.
Harms completed 12 of 16 passes for 123 yards. Although Pittman ran for more than 300 yards, it wasn’t a school record. That record still belongs to Justin Berrens, who ran for 312 yards in a game.
Luxemburg-Casco 48, New London 0
Five Luxemburg-Casco players scored touchdowns as the Spartans shut out the Bulldogs.
Max Ronsman opened the scoring with a 6-yard quarterback keeper in the first quarter, while Cameron Dorner added scoring runs of 56 and 33 yards before halftime.
The Spartans added four more touchdowns in the second half on Ronsman’s 73-yard pass to Sawyer Dorn; 14- and 1-yard runs from Samuel Schutz; and Landon Derenne’s 14-yard run.
- Bay Conference results: Aug. 31: Fox Valley Lutheran 44, Shawano 20 (NC). Sept. 1: Waupaca 50, Denmark 14 (NC); Luxemburg-Casco 48, New London 0 (NC); Little Chute 29, Seymour 6 (NC); Wrightstown 34, Winneconne 13 (NC); Xavier 48, Freedom 3 (NC). Sept. 8 schedule: Little Chute at Waupaca, 7 p.m. (NC); Fox Valley Lutheran at New London, 7 p.m. (NC); Denmark at Seymour, 7 p.m. (NC); Luxemburg-Casco at Shawano, 7 p.m. (NC); Freedom at Winneconne, 7 p.m. (NC); Wrightstown at Xavier, 7 p.m. (NC).
Truckers win Northwoods opener
Clintonville’s football team headed to Crandon Aug. 31 and returned home with a 33-28 win over the Cardinals.
It was the first win of the season for the Truckers after dropping nonconference games to Amherst and Mosinee.
Crandon held the Truckers to 24 rushing yards, but Kade Rosenow completed 26 of 44 passes for 300 yards and four touchdowns.
The teams were tied 6-6 after one quarter and 12-12 at halftime. Crandon opened the scoring with Cruz Palubicki’s 5-yard run, but Rosenow answered with a 19-yard pass to Sam Wegener.
Clintonville took its first lead in the second quarter on Rosenow’s 5-yard pass to Wegener, but Caden Palubicki tied the game with a 54-yard run.
Rosenow added touchdown passes of 5 yards to Zachary Johnson and 37 yards to Wegener in the third quarter.
Crandon cut the Truckers’ lead to 26-20 in the fourth quarter on Mason Mullins’ 4-yard run. Clintonville added to its lead with Zander Schroeder’s 5-yard run before Cruz Palubicki scored Crandon’s final touchdown on a 7-yard run.
Crandon outgained the Truckers 370-324. The Cardinals had a 306-24 advantage in rushing yards and Clintonville outgained the home team 300-64 through the air.
Wegener caught 13 passes for 148 yards.
- Northwoods Conference results: Aug. 31: Clintonville 33, Crandon 28; Grantsburg 36, Oconto Falls 20 (NC). Sept. 1: Crivitz 36, Coleman 34; Tomahawk 35, Kingdom Prep Lutheran 14 (NC). Sept. 8 schedule: Crivitz at Clintonville, 7 p.m.; Crandon at Tomahawk, 7 p.m.; Bark River-Harris (Michigan) at Coleman, 7 p.m. (NC); Auburndale at Oconto Falls, 7 p.m. (NC).
Hornets sting Thunderbirds
A 32-0 halftime deficit turned to be too big of a hole for the Iola-Scandinavia football team.
Colby scored four touchdowns in the first half Sept. 1 and went on to post a 46-14 nonconference win over the Thunderbirds.
Gavin Voss scored on a 4-yard run and Tayt Smith added a 74-yard pass to Caden Kleparski in the first quarter. The Hornets added to their lead in the second quarter with Smith’s 14-yard pass to Brennan Geiger and Colton Orth’s 34-yard run.
Voss gave Colby a 38-0 lead in the third quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run, but Iola-Scandinavia’s Jensen Rice had a 25-yard scoring pass to Alex Robbins in the third quarter and added a 20-yard pass to Billy Myers in the fourth quarter.
Voss capped the scoring in the fourth quarter with an 80-yard run and finished with 216 rushing yards.
Rice led the T-Birds with 90 rushing yards and completed 10 of 21 passes for 110 yards.
- Central Wisconsin Conference-Small results: Aug. 31: Pittsville 60, Assumption, 16 (NC). Sept. 1: Colby 46, Iola-Scandinavia 14 (NC); Auburndale 27, Loyal 8 (NC); Edgar 50, Pacelli 0 (NC); Marathon 40, Rosholt 0 (NC). Sept. 8 schedule: Abbotsford at Iola-Scandinavia, 7 p.m. (NC); Marathon at Assumption, 7 p.m. (NC); Colby at Loyal, 7 p.m. (NC); Pacelli at Pittsville, 7 p.m. (NC); Rosholt at Edgar, 7 p.m. (NC).
Polar Bears fall to Panthers
It was a chance for the Hortonville football team to pick up a Valley Football Association win in front of a home crowd.
The Stevens Point Panthers, however, had other ideas.
The Panthers held the Polar Bears to 116 yards of offense and returned home Sept. 1 with a 26-10 win.
Stevens Point took a 14-0 lead into the second quarter after Braylon Smola opened the scoring with a 57-yard touchdown run and Grant Chandonais added an 8-yard pass to Ethan Ehlinger.
Hortonville answered with a pair of scores in a two-minute span in the second quarter. Colin Wendt kicked a 34-yard field goal and Broden Butzin scored from a yard out after Miles Sillas recovered the ball at the 1-yard line after Stuart Ellenbecker blocked a punt.
The Panthers added one more score just before halftime on Chandonais’ 15-yard pass to Amon Konopacki.
Neither team scored in the third quarter and Stevens Point closed out the scoring with Chandonais’ 27-yard pass to Konopacki.
- Valley Football Association results: Sept. 1: Stevens Point 26, Hortonville 10; Marshfield 38, Wausau East 14; D.C. Everest 52, Appleton West 7; Wausau West 21, Wisconsin Rapids 0. Sept. 8 schedule: Hortonville at Appleton West, 7 p.m.; Wausau West at Wausau East, 7 p.m.; Marshfield at D.C. Everest, 7 p.m.; Wisconsin Rapids at Stevens Point, 7 p.m.