Raiders fall to Winnebago Lutheran in Level One matchup

Though it didn’t earn them a home game in the first round, a seven-win regular season had the Arcadia football team hopeful they had the tools to earn a playoff victory for the first time since 2019. But a fast start for Winnebago Lutheran proved a bit too much for the visiting Raiders to overcome.

No. 4 seed Winnebago Lutheran (7-3) raced out to a 21-0 lead in the first half and rode that wave to a 42-26 victory over No. 5 seed Arcadia (7-3) in the opening round of the Division Five playoffs this past Friday in Fond du Lac.

The Vikings wasted no time setting the tone early, marching down the field on their opening drive and scoring on quarterback Gannon Schwartz’s six-yard touchdown run just 3.5 minutes into the contest.

After forcing an Arcadia punt, Winnebago Lutheran again methodically moved down the field and then scored on Sam Pollesch’s 35-yard touchdown scamper.

The Raiders got across midfield on their second drive but were eventually forced to punt. On a third-and-12 play, Schwartz connected on a pass to Nolan Dragolovich that would’ve been good for a first down, only for Dragolovich to get loose for a 70-yard touchdown to make it 21-0 early in the second quarter.

Arcadia set up shop at their own 36-yard line after a strong kickoff return by Jonah Slaby, and Max Blaschko followed with a 60-yard run to get the Raiders knocking at the door of the end zone. Two players later, Blaschko punched in a six-yard touchdown run to trim the deficit to 21-6.

The Raiders successfully converted a surprise onside kick and drove deep into Viking territory, but had their scoring threat snuffed out on a fourth-and-one play at the seven-yard line.

Schwartz broke free for an 82-yard touchdown gallop on the ensuing Winnebago Lutheran possession and Arcadia was held to a quick three and out. However, Slaby hauled in an interception on a deflection with just under a minute left, the Raiders drove deep again, and Carter Wegman completed a one-yard TD pass to Khyle Updike with 1.9 seconds left until halftime as Arcadia cut the Viking lead to 28-14 at the break.

The Raiders kept the ball rolling by scoring on the opening drive of the second half thanks to Wegman’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Deklyn Grzadzielewski to make it a one-possession game at 28-20. The Vikings continued to have the answer on offense, however, and put together another scoring drive that ended with three-yard TD run by Schwartz.

Early in the fourth quarter, Wegman was picked off in Viking territory and Schwartz soon followed with a 76-yard touchdown run that made it 42-20 and effectively put a dagger in Arcadia’s season.

Blaschko added a final 11-yard touchdown run to wrap up the scoring for the evening and his prolific career as a Raider. Blaschko’s final performance brought him to 1,830 rushing yards for the season, breaking the Arcadia single-season school record of 1,793 set by Justin Kostner in 1999.

Blaschko piled up 232 yards and two touchdowns on 33 carries, Wegman completed 17 of 28 passes for 183 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, and Slaby reeled in seven catches for 88 yards.

For the Vikings, Schwartz had 289 yards and four touchdowns on 24 rushes, while also losing a fumbled that was recovered by Grzadzielewski.

Arcadia

Rushes (att./yds) — Blaschko 33/232, Breska 2/14, Wegman 2/13

Receiving (rec./yds) — Slaby 7/88, Updike 2/30, Blaschko 1/28, Grzadzielewski 2/21, Breska 5/16

Passing (comp./att./yds) — Wegman 17/28/183

Tackles — Updike 8, Grzadzielewski 6.5, Slaby 4, Breska 4, Blaschko 3, Gomez 2, Luna, 2, Glenzinski 1.5, Wegman 1.5, Solberg 1, Barrientos 0.5