Union Grove 28, Delavan-Darien 16
QB Nelson enjoys career game, up for athlete of the week
By Tim Wester
Sports Correspondent
The Union Grove football took a large step towards history with its clutch 28-16 victory at Delavan-Darien last Friday, Sep 11.
The Broncos fought off a 9-0 first-half deficit on its way to posting their first 4-0 start to a season since 1970.
Junior quarterback Matt Nelson fired a pair of touchdown passes, including a back-breaking 68-yard strike to Joe Peterson late in the fourth quarter, while running back Travis Cadd ran for two more scores to seal the historic victory.
With the victory, Union Grove (4-0, 2-0) remains tied atop the Southern Lakes Conference with Lake Geneva Badger and Waterford.
While many are surprised by the undefeated mark, Union Grove coach Craig McClelland isn’t the least bit surprised by his team’s success.
“You can see our success on Fridays, but what you don’t see is how hard we work the other days of the week,” McClelland said. “And the hard work is paying off on Friday nights.”
Hard work and championship-level poise helped the Broncos against the previously undefeated Comets.
After Delavan-Darien jumped out to a 9-0 lead in the early second quarter, Union Grove stormed back with a pair of second quarter touchdowns to take a halftime lead.
Cadd got things started with an 8-yard touchdown run that capped a 65-yard scoring drive.
Nelson later fired a 13-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Laxton with 13 seconds left in the half to put Union Grove up 14-9 at halftime.
“Nelson was outstanding in the game,” McClelland said. “He made some big throws in the game when it mattered most.”
After Delavan-Darien quarterback Jake Benzing put the Comets back on top early in the third with a 10-yard touchdown pass, the Broncos took control of the game for good.
The Broncos used a drive of more than five minutes to march down the field and take a 21-16 lead midway through the third quarter. Cadd capped off the 68-yard drive with a 2-yard run.
“Cadd is just a physical runner who seeks contact,” McClelland said. “His brusing style along with excellent fitness really helped us wear down their smaller offensive and defensive lines.”
The Broncos, nevertheless, continued to cling to a one-possession lead deep into the fourth quarter until Nelson delivered the final blow with a 68-yard touchdown pass to Peterson with just under three minutes to play.
Peterson, who was coming back from a sore knee in practice, finished with a season-high eight catches for 106 yards and one touchdown.
“The touchdown came on a 3rd and 12 play that we drew up after a timeout,” McClelland said. “We got much more out of the formation than we expected.”
The 12-point margain was more than enough for the Broncos’ defense, which shut down an offensive attack that rolled up over 500 total yards in its previous two games.
“Our defense was phenomenal,” McClelland said. “We held their quarterback, who had been ranked third in the state in passing, to just 8-28 passing and 1 touchdown.”
The Broncos’ undefeated season will be tested tonight when it hosts Wilmot. The Panthers, who are 1-1 in the Lakes but took undefeated Waterford to overtime, made easy work of Elkhorn last week, 41-12.
“It certainly doesn’t get any easier this week,” McClelland said. “But we have so many players that have been through conference play before, so they won’t be intimidated.”
-
-
-
-
-