Balanced Raiders conquer Knights

Coming into this year, the Arcadia football team hoped to be a group that could roll out a multi-pronged offensive attack and a stout defensive effort on a weekly basis. That vision was on full display for the Raiders in their win over a state-ranked opponent last week.

Arcadia (4-1, 2-1 Coulee) welcomed in the Luther Knights (4-1, 2-1) and sent them home with their first loss of the season, winning 22-6 in their battle of Coulee heavyweights this past Thursday at Cashen Field. Both teams agreed to move the game from Friday to Thursday in anticipation of inclement weather Friday evening.

Arcadia senior Jonah Slaby was emblematic of the team’s success against Luther — who came into the game ranked No. 7 in Division 6 in the Bound Wisconsin coaches’ poll — starting with an interception in the end zone early in the second quarter that quashed a scoring opportunity for the Knights.

On the ensuing Raiders drive, Slaby made a couple of catches on third downs to keep the chains moving, including a pass not intended for Slaby that was tipped but Slaby was able to haul in. Senior quarterback Carter Wegman completed a 28-yard touchdown pass to Slaby for a 6-0 lead with 3:27 left in the second quarter.

The next Luther possession got all the way into the red zone, only for Slaby to recover a fumble with 32 seconds left to preserve that 6-0 lead going into the break.

“I felt like I could have executed better, but I made some plays when we needed it,” Slaby said. “That’s what I’m there for — for my team.”

Early in the third quarter, Arcadia junior Deklyn Grzadzielewski scooped up a Knight fumble and returned it all the way to the nine-yard line, setting up senior running back Logan Breska’s nine-yard touchdown scamper followed by a conversion run to make it 14-0.

Later in the third, the Raider defense forced a turnover on downs, and a Wegman 20-yard pass to Grzadzielewski got Arcadia into plus territory once again. After a 15-yard run by Breska brought the Raiders into the red zone, they cashed in yet again on Wegman’s 14-yard touchdown strike to junior Khyle Updike as Arcadia surged ahead 22-0.

The Knights finally got on the board on the first play of the fourth quarter when senior quarterback Jonathan Holub found Trent Berg for a 37-yard TD pass to cut the deficit to 22-6. Luther then recovered an onside kick and drove to the red zone, only for the Arcadia defense to stand tall and force a turnover on downs.

The Raiders were able to salt the last seven-and-a-half minutes of the game away with a lengthy drive, which included Wegman moving the chains on third down with a couple of pinpoint downfield passes while on the move.

“We really, in the offseason, felt like we could be this good,” said Arcadia head coach Derek Updike. “But yet at the same time as you’re in the game and you see the little mistakes, and you start to become a fault finder instead, a perfectionist almost. And they’re high school kids; they’re going to make mistakes. But that’s what happens when you have a nice team is you kind of elevate your expectations.”

Wegman completed 12 of 17 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns, with Slaby making five receptions for 89 yards and a TD and Grzadzielewski hauling in four catches for 52 yards.

Breska led the way out of the backfield with 124 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. Senior Austin Fernholz and Grzadzielewski tied for the team lead by being involved with 11 total tackles.

Luther senior running back Logan Pierce put up 114 yards on the ground on 21 rushes.

The Raiders look to keep their positive momentum going when they hit the road to take on the Westby Norsemen (2-3, 1-2) on Friday at 7 p.m. in Westby.