Friday, October 11, 2024
Devin Peterson picked the perfect time to have a big game.
The senior running back ran for a game-high 163 yards Friday and scored a touchdown as the Iola-Scandinavia Thunderbirds handed Rosholt a 24-14 defeat at Thunderbird Field.
Peterson's effort came on a night that the Iola-Scandinavia community honored 50 seasons of T-Bird football.
"There was a nice crowd and we had about 90 former players come out," coach Scott Erickson said. "It was a lot of fun. I got to see a guy from my class that I hadn't seen in 18, 20 years."
Brady Huettner capped the T-Birds' opening drive with a 28-yard run. Dillon Zdroik tied the game at 6-6 with a 1-yard run, but Bradly Hardel gave I-S the lead for good with a 10-yard score.
Neither team scored in the second quarter, but Spencer Erickson added to the T-Birds' lead with a 2-yard run in the third period. Peterson found the end zone from 2 yards out in the fourth quarter to give the T-Birds a 24-6 lead and Rosholt's Nick Yenter threw a 4-yard pass to Zach Bembenek for the final score.
The T-Birds outrushed the Hornets 257-126, but Rosholt had a 108-6 advantage through the air.
Hardel averaged nearly 20 yards a carry with 58 yards in three attempts, while Buettner added 46 yards on 10 carries. Zdroik and Owen Neff led Rosholt's ground game with 79 and 72 yards, respectively.
"Overall, I was happy with the way the young guys stepped up," Erickson said. "No one cared who got the credit, they just kept working hard."
I-S improved to 1-1 on the season and will open Central Wisconsin 8 Conference play at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 10, at Bonduel.
That will be a big test for the T-Birds, as the Bears have scored 89 points in two nonconference wins over Crivitz and Peshtigo.
"They have size and speed," Erickson said. "We're going to have to rise to the challenge."
