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It was a warm muggy night, but even dark, storm-looking clouds did not keep the Wild Rose Wildcats from taking a 50-6 football win over the Niagra Badgers on Aug. 25.
As high school football games go, the visitors received the opening kickoff. Christian Hedmark carried the ball a lot for Niagra. The Badgers started out on their own 41 with their first possession of the game. Hedmark had runs of 8 and 10 yards before Wildcat Evan Tratz ended the visitors’ progress with a sack.
Wild Rose took over possession on its’ own 48. Cohen Deschler handled a lot of the carries for the hosts, and put forth an 11-yard run to start the Wildcats’ offense. A pass completion was good for 8 yards, and it was not long before Tratz found himself in the end zone on a 25-yard run. A 2-point conversion gave the Wildcats an 8-0 lead with 6:59 remaining in the first quarter.
Niagra’s second posses-sion saw some yardage gained, and a first down picked up before Wild Rose put the stop on the visitors.
Wild Rose’ second possession included a couple pass completions for short gains before Deschler took off on a 70-yard romp, only to have it called back because of a penalty. A pass to Deschler did give the hosts a first down before the first quarter ended.
It wasn’t long into the second quarter before the Wildcats found paydirt. Tratz ran for 17 yards shortly before Deschler scored on a 43-yard run. Wild Rose led 14-0 with 10:53 to play in the half.
Wild Rose kept the ensuing kick on the ground and recovred the ball on the Niagra 40. Deschler picked up 7 yards before Jaxon Zacharias caught a pass for several yards.
Niagra took over possession for a very short time before Wild Rose’s offense took charge again.
A pass to Jayden King was good for 9 yards, and a first down was achieved at the Niagra 8. A pass to Wyatt Bowen in the end zone increased the Wildcat lead. A 2-point conversion by Tratz put Wild Rose up 22-0 with 7:09 remaining in the half.
Niagra got on the board before halftime with a full possession. Aiden Sweig got the visitors going with a big kick return to the Badgers from 41. From there, Hedmark put in five big runs to get the visitors deep into the hosts’ territory. A QB keeper got Niagra to the Wild Rose 2 where Mason Richtig was able to take the ball across the goal line. The Badgers trailed 22-6 with 1:46 remaining in the half.
Wild Rose’s last possession of the half had its’ ups and downs. The Wildcats started on their own 35. A pass to Bowen was good for 9 yards before Tratz took the ball to the Niagra 37. Zacharias caught a pass for a 7-yard gain. Penalties started playing a role in the Wildcat progress, nullifying a pass completion, followed by a nullified scoring run. The half ended with a pass completion to Mason Olsen to put Wild Rose at the Niagra 26.
As Wild Rose received the ball in the second half of play, Zacharias returned the kick 75 yards to score. The hosts then led 28-6 with 11:44 still to play in the third quarter.
Niagra’s first possession of the half didn’t last long as a fumble was recovered by Wild Rose.
It took a few plays for the hosts to score starting at the visitor’s 32. A first down was achieved at the 21 before Deschler made his way to the end zone from there. A 2-point conversion extended the Wildcat lead to 36-6 with 8:24 remaining in the third quarter.
Sawyer Rouse returned the ensuing kick to start Niagra’s second possession of the half to the Badger 40. However, the visitors couldn’t get far before the hosts took over again.
Starting at the Badger 46, Deschler ran for 8 yards. Bowen put in a big run before Deschler ran 30 yards to score. Zacharias added a 2-point conversion for a 44-6 Wild Rose advantage with 4:34 remaining in the quarter.
Niagra picked up two 1st down with its’ final possession of the quarter on a few good gains to end up at the Wild Rose 36.
The Badgers could only reach the Wildcat 29 as the final quarter began.
Wild Rose went to work with its’ only possession in the quarter as the clock ran continuously. Trevor Dahl put forth two runs of a about 17 yards each, and another for about 10 yards, as Olsen ran for 7. Tratz got in the last play of the drive with a 17-yard run to score. The final score was rung up as 50-6 with 2:30 remaining in the game.
Niagra had one last chance to put up another score with a 15-yard run to midfield. Another gain of sever yards was obtained as the clock ran out, sealing the 50-6 victory for the Wildcats.
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