Football boys hang tough but fall

By Dan Truttschel~Sports Correspondent

For two quarters Friday night, the Westosha Central football team went toe-to-toe with one of the Southern Lakes Conference leaders.

But in the end, its strong defensive effort wasn’t quite enough.

Host Waterford slowly pulled away with a touchdown in both the third and fourth quarters to break open a close game en route to a 20-3 victory.

The loss dropped Central to 0-5 in the SLC and 0-7 overall. Waterford kept pace at the top of the SLC standings with Badger and Wilmot, all at 4-1.

As has been the case throughout the season, the game came down to just a few miscues that ultimately cost the Falcons, Central coach Tyson Mengel said.

“Waterford has a strong defense and a decent offense,” he said. “The first half, we executed our game plan defensively and shut them down.

“(But) coming out at half, we had a crucial turnover deep in our zone. They took advantage and scored off it. Offensively, we struggled making a man miss in the passing game and just couldn’t put together a drive.”

Waterford’s Jake Bauer, who rushed for 162 yards on 25 carries, put the Wolverines in front with an 11-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

The Falcons answered with their only points of the night in the second quarter on a 27-yard field goal by Seth Seybert to cut the deficit to 7-3 at halftime.

Seybert also is a member of the Central boys soccer team who kicks for the Falcons on Friday nights.

“(He has) a great leg,” Mengel said.

The second half was similar to the first, as the Wolverines eventually took control behind two more Bauer touchdowns, the first a 4-yard run in the third quarter, followed by an 11-yard run in the fourth.

Waterford used more of a wildcat look in the second half that seemed to confuse the Falcons’ defense, Mengel said.

“One they moved to a wildcat look in the second half, the kids did not trust their assignments any more and we lost our gap integrity,” he said.

“We just did not do our assignments. That is not to take away from (Bauer’s) running. He ran hard and fought for the extra yards. In the second half, he proved he wanted it more.”

Prior to the second half, Mengel was pleased with what his defense brought to the party.

“We have a hard-hitting team,” he said. “When we stick to our assignments, we are also a great defense.”

Waterford held the Falcons to 88 total yards, including 71 passing from quarterback Greg Kuhfuss. Austin Feeney led the running attack with eight carries for 24 yards, while Cameron Schneider had six catches for 43 yards and Seth Kopczynski had four catches for 27.

The Wolverines were sound defensively all night, Mengel said.

“Waterford did not do anything crazy against us,” he said. “They did bring some pressure. The big thing they do well is tackle. They will come up and wrap up to bring you down.”

Home finale this week

Central closes out its 2013 home schedule this Friday when it hosts Delavan-Darien at 7 p.m.

The Comets kept their playoff hopes alive last week with a 28-24 upset over Burlington. Delavan now is 2-3 in the SLC and 3-4 overall.

The Comets feature a spread offense, led by talented quarterback Jesse Collins, but Mengel said he doesn’t think his team should be surprised by much that Delavan will do.

“Luckily, their passing game is similar to ours so our kids know it,” Mengel said. “The big challenge we have to overcome is their pursuit for playoffs.

“If they win out, they are in. We must come out and play hard from the opening kickoff to hopefully eliminate their momentum.”


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