Red Hawks run amok to earn first football win

There was no stopping the Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau High School football team’s rushing attack last week.

The Red Hawks gashed the host Blackhawks for more than 500 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground in a 56-15 Coulee Conference victory at Viroqua High School last week, the first win of the season for G-E-T. 

The host Blackhawks started the scoring on Friday, returning a blocked kick 20 yards for a 7-0 lead. A touchdown run from Omar Jimenez and a two-point conversion turned the game in favor of G-E-T later in the first quarter before Kyle Seiling took a 48-yard run to the end zone for a 16-7 advantage.

Seiling scored his second touchdown of the night in the second quarter, and teammate Ben Hansen added a score for a 30-7 halftime lead for the visitors. Seiling scored two more touchdowns in the second half—including a 97-yard run—and finished the night with a season-high 217 yards and four scores.

Isaiah Carroll scored a 25-yard touchdown on his lone rush, and Andrew Lebakken capped the scoring with an 81-yard score on his lone carry. Max Knapmiller had 109 rushing yards on 11 carries in a game that all seven players who ran the ball for G-E-T finished with at least 11 yards.

The G-E-T defense was just as productive as its offensive counterpart.

Gunnar Johnson had a game-high 13 tackles for G-E-T on a night the Red Hawks collected nine sacks—three from Cale Pickering and two from Michael Canton—and intercepted Viroqua twice.

Next on the schedule for the Red Hawks—which need to win all three remaining games to qualify for the WIAA postseason tournament—is conference leader West Salem this Friday at home. 

The Panthers boast a 6-0 record and are the top ranked team in Division Four, per the wissports.net coaches poll.

G-E-T—

Rushing (att./yds.)—Seiling 13/217, Knapmiller 11/109, Lebakken 1/81, Johnson 8/33, Jimenez 4/30, Carroll 1/25, Hansen 5/11.

Receiving (rec./yds.)—Johnson 1/9.

Passing (comp./att./yds.)—Hansen 1/6/9. 

Tackles (solo/total)—Johnson 7/13, Jimenez 6/8, Bishop 4/6, Pickering 3/4, Remus 1/3, Burns 1/3, Eiken 2/2, D. Herman 2/2, Cantlon 2/2, Seiling 1/2, Carroll 1/1, Knapmiller 1/1, L. Herman 1/1, Nichols 1/1, Ruesgen 1/1, Lebakken 0/1, Zimmerman 0/1.