Arcadia football team earns first Coulee win
A strong second quarter made the difference for the Arcadia High School football team last week to push the Raiders to their first Coulee Conference win of 2024 at Viroqua High School.
The Raiders turned an 8-7 advantage over the Blackhawks after one quarter into a 24-7 lead at halftime behind two consecutive touchdown passes from quarterback Carter Wegman to senior wide receiver Ted Teske.
With the win, Arcadia improved to 3-1 this season and 1-1 in Coulee play.
Wegman and Teske were once again on the same page for the Raiders — Teske led the visitors with four catches for 68 yards and two scores, while Wegman finished the night 14-for-19 for 141 yards and another touchdown throw to Trey Lyga.
Max Blaschko continues to be a weapon for Arcadia out of the backfield, as his 144 rushing yards on 26 carries were a game-high. Blaschko, a junior, ranks second in the conference with 427 rushing yards through four games, a number beaten only by West Salem’s Luke Baginski (578 yards).
Viroqua cut the Raiders’ lead to 10 in the third quarter with a 15-yard passing touchdown, but Arcadia got the points back in the opening minutes of the final quarter on Wegman’s five-yard toss to Lyga.
Arcadia finished with 305 yards of offense to Viroqua’s 238, marking the first time Arcadia has surpassed 300 yards of total offense since they collected 370 yards in a week one 36-6 victory over Webster.
Nicholas Elisius was Viroqua’s most productive player, earning 103 rushing yards and the home team’s first score in 18 carries of work.
Teske led the Raider defense with 12 tackles and an interception on Viroqua quarterback Benson McDowell, who threw for 122 yards, two touchdowns and a pair of turnovers. Khyle Updike earned the other interception for the Arcadia defense.
Caleb Pronschinske’s 10 tackles were the second most for the Raiders, which got eight tackles apiece from Logan Breska and Blaschko as well as seven each from Max Sobotta and Lyga.
Next on Arcadia’s schedule is West Salem, which visits Arcadia High School this Friday.
The Panthers are off to a 4-0 start to the season and have combined to score 75 points in their two conference wins over Westby and Viroqua.
Arcadia—
Rushing (att./yds.)—Blaschko 26/144, Sobotta 5/14, Teske 2/9, Breska 4/8, Wegman 4/-11.
Receiving (rec./yds.)—Teske 4/68, Slaby 2/38, Lyga 5/23, Sobotta 3/12.
Passing (comp./att./yds.)—Wegman 14/19/141.
Tackles (solo/total)—Teske 7/12, Pronschinske 8/10, Breska 4/8, Blaschke 4/8, Sobotta 4/7, Lyga 4/7, Slaby 3/4, Updike 2/4, Glenzinski 1/4, Wegman 2/3, Ruiz 1/1, Wozney 0/1, Olmos 0/1.
