By Jason Arndt
Sports Correspondent
Tyson Mengel reiterated to his Westosha Central High School receiving corps all season to trust senior quarterback Josiah McDermit.
The trust paid off for the left-handed thrower, who passed for a school-record 314 yards against Delavan-Darien Oct. 2, but it wasn’t enough as the Falcons lost 49-36 on Homecoming.
McDermit, who completed 9 of 23 attempts, had three touchdowns, all to junior receiver Austin Kurylo, including a 60-yard score in the third quarter.
Kurylo caught five passes for 208 yards.
“All of our receivers, across the board, are juniors,” Mengel said. “We knew we would have some growing pains early in the season, but we just had to call them out and say ‘Hey, we got a quarterback that can deliver.’”
The Comets struck first with a 17-yard run by quarterback Mike Alder, who produced 123 rushing yards on 20 attempts and completed 14 of 21 pass attempts for 173 yards, in the first quarter.
Westosha Central answered with two scores, including an 80-yard run by Tre Williams to give the Falcons a 7-6 lead, followed by the 48-yard haul by Kurylo.
Williams, who had a team-leading 79 yards on seven carries, acknowledged McDermit for keeping the Falcons in the game.
“His passing was incredible, and was on the dot on almost every pass, and that is what kept us in the game,” Williams said.
But, Delavan-Darien closed out the opening quarter with an Alder 18-yard touchdown run to tie the game 13-13 entering the second frame.
Senior Logan Hughes, who carried the ball 10 times for 75 yards, gave the Falcons a 19-13 lead after the first half on a 7-yard touchdown.
In the third quarter, the Comets’ Zach Gidcumb dashed for a 49-yard touchdown, but the McDermit-Kurylo combination responded with a 60-yard touchdown to give the Falcons its final lead of the game at 26-19.
Momentum shifted in Delavan-Darien’s favor, with a five-yard touchdown run by Fabias Shipman, who followed up with a two-point conversion. Furthermore, Alder added a 4-yard run and Gidcumb made a two-point conversion, putting the Falcons in a 35-26 hole.
Two minutes into the fourth quarter, Westosha Central gained possession of the ball at the Delavan-Darien 3-yard line on a botched punt, but was only able to muster a 21-yard field goal by Seth Seybert.
The Comets responded with a 9-yard touchdown run by Gidcumb, who converted the two-point conversion, but Westosha Central answered with a Kurylo 24-yard touchdown reception to make it 43-36.
In the closing seconds of the game, the Comets added a 25-yard touchdown reception by Ethan Cesarz to seal the 49-36 Westosha Central loss.
Despite winning by 13 points, Delavan-Darien coach Bret St. Arnauld acknowledged the Falcons put a scare into the Comets, who improved to 4-3 (2-3 Southern Lakes Conference).
“They are very athletic, and got a great quarterback, and have a handful of great corners with great speed,” St. Arnauld said. “We gave up a lot of big plays, which is what I was nervous about.”
Next up for Westosha Central (0-7, 0-5 SLC) is a showdown with Kenosha County rival Wilmot Union High School.
The Panthers (6-1, 4-1 SLC) will be a tough competitor for Westosha Central, but it will bring together players with a history of playing with and against each other, Mengel said.
“It is just the rivalry, and as of late, Wilmot has had our number,” Mengel said. “But these guys have played youth football with (Wilmot) in grade school together…they know most of the guys, and a lot of them are friends.”