Broncos rout Westosha Central
By Tim Wester
Correspondent
Union Grove coach and former quarterback Craig McClelland prides himself in developing high school quarterbacks.
But with an arsenal of game-changing running backs at his disposal, the Broncos’ coach certainly doesn’t mind leaning on his ground game to rack up victories.
The Broncos ground game certainly helped against visiting Southern Lakes Conference opponent Westosha Central Oct. 18.
Union Grove, which racked up 337 total rushing yards, scored six total touchdowns on the ground to defeat the Falcons 40-15.
The decisive victory helped Union Grove (4-5, 3-4 SLC) earn an at-large bid into the WIAA Division 3 playoffs.
The Broncos, seeded eighth, travel to No. 1 New Berlin Eisenhower Friday in a first round battle.
Eisenhower (8-1, 7-1 Woodland-West Conference), which shared the conference title with New Berlin West, features a stingy defense allowing just 11 points per game.
If its Oct. 18 victory is any indication, the Broncos run game will provide a daunting test for Eisenhower.
Senior Konner Goetsch finished with 16 carries for 143 yards, scored three touchdowns, while Tommy Hempel added two more scores.
Nick Williams got the ground game rolling with a 43-yard touchdown run to put the Broncos ahead 7-0 in the first quarter. Williams finished 86 yards on 11 carries.
Hempel later extended the Broncos lead to 14-0 on a 1-yard touchdown to close out the first quarter.
Goetsch broke the game open in the second quarter with a 15-yard touchdown run to make it 20-0.
The Broncos’ continued the onslaught in the second half with a 1-yard touchdown run from Hempel and gave Union Grove a 27-0 advantage.
Westosha Central, which only amassed 137 total offensive yards, scored its first touchdown on a Gavin Carlson 11-yard pass to Michael Mulhollon and cut its deficit to 27-7.
But Goetsch answered with a 23-yard run to build the Broncos lead to 34-7.
Goetsch added a 22-yard touchdown run for good measure in the fourth to make it 40-7.
Carlson, who threw two interceptions, both to Hempel, went 8-for-22 in pass attempts for just 59 yards. He added his second touchdown to Zach Kazumura to cap off the contest’s scoring.
As for McClelland’s quarterback, Nash Wolf, the junior under center went 9-for-13 in pass attempts for 128 yards.
The impressive victory was the Broncos’ third straight conference win, which helped them earn the improbable berth into the WIAA Division 3 playoffs after losing their first four conference games.
Westosha Central finished its season 2-7 overall and 2-5 in conference play.
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