Westby front controls Arcadia in CC play
The Arcadia football team had its chance against perhaps the best squad in the Coulee Conference, but it couldn’t capitalize on momentum and the Norsemen ran away from the game.
The Norsemen stormed out of the gates with 20 points in the first quarter, but a long touchdown gave Arcadia some juice. The Raiders defense stopped Westby twice in the quarter, but a fumble in the end zone gave Westby another score as it took a 27-6 lead into halftime. The Norsemen had two more big offensive plays in the third quarter and another defensive touchdown as the game turned into a rout.
The loss was the third straight for Arcadia as they fell to 2-3 overall and are winless in three Coulee Conference games. They’ll have a winless opponent this week as the Raiders play at Black River Falls (0-5, 0-3). The Tigers are coming off of a 47-0 loss to La Crosse Aquinas, which is tied with Westby at the top of the Coulee. Aquinas and Westby will also play this week in a game that could decide the conference championship.
Westby 47 Arcadia 6
When Ted Teske broke free behind the Westby defense it gave the Raiders life and a chance in a game that had been dominated by Westby.
After Westby scored three touchdowns in the first quarter to take a 20-0 lead, Teske broke free from the Norsemen secondary. Quarterback Kaiden Rotering released a deep pass that hit Teske and the Raiders were in business with an 82-yard touchdown pass.
Teske came up with another big play on Westby’s next possession, intercepting Anders Stakson at the Arcadia 11-yard line. The Raiders went three-and-out, but had another shot after its defense stopped Westby on a fourth down at the 11.
That possession had a chance to make the game close, but ended up turning it even more in Westby’s favor. Rotering rolled to his left before he was stripped of the ball near the goal line and Westby recovered in the end zone. The ensuing point after made the score 27-6, which is where the score stood at halftime.
The Norsemen controlled the line of scrimmage in the game, making an Arcadia comeback unlikely. Blake Sutton broke free for a 50-yard touchdown early in the third quarter. It was Westby’s third rushing touchdown of the game as they finished with 223 rushing yards, compared to just three for Arcadia.
After Sutton’s touchdown, Westby’s defense found the end zone again, taking an interception back 33 yards for another score. Stakston added a 31-yard touchdown pass before the end of the third quarter, putting his team ahead by 41 points.
Nearly half of Arcadia’s yards came on the long strike to Teske. Rotering finished with 164 passing yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Freshman Carter Wegman entered the game and threw another interception.
Max Blaschko led Arcadia with 11 rushing yards and was the only player to have more than one yard on the ground.
In all, Westby out-gained Arcadia, 379-171 and had twice as many first downs — 16 to eight.
Arcadia —
Rushing (att/yds.) — Blaschko 5/11 Sobotta 3/1 Baier 1/1 Breska 2/1 Teske 2/-3 Rotering 4/-8
Receiving (rec./yds.) — Teske 3/96 Drazkowski 4/65 Pronschinske 1/4 Scow 1/3
Passing (comp./att./yds.) — Rotering 8/21/164 Wegman 1/5/4
Tackles (total/assists) — Teske 8/1 Sobotta 6/2 Blaschko 4/1 Baier 1/0 Glenzinski 1/0 Ruiz 1/0 Scow 1/0 Lightfoot 1/0 Almos Aria 1/0 Wegman 0/1 Drazkowski 0/1 J. Rotering 0/1 Conrad 0/1
