Waterford bounces back behind running prowess of Keller
By Chris Bennett
Sports Correspondent
Waterford led 17-0 at halftime and beat Wilmot 24-13 Sept. 8 in a Southern Lakes Conference high school football game at Waterford Union High School.
The victory is the Wolverines’ first this season in SLC play. Waterford (2-2, 1-1 SLC) plays a SLC game Friday at Burlington.
“It was a great win,” coach Adam Bakken said. “The kids played fantastic. The seniors were fantastic. We had so many young kids step up and play well. Our two leading rushers were sophomores.”
Tanner Keller opened the scoring early, rushing for a three-yard touchdown in the first quarter that gave Waterford a 7-0 lead after Patrick Goldammer’s extra point.
Goldammer connected on a 24-yard field goal in the second quarter for a 10-0 lead, and Keller extended that lead to 17-0 after a 57-yard touchdown and extra point from Goldammer.
The Wolverines sat on a 17-0 lead at halftime.
Waterford added to that lead with a 47-yard touchdown run from Goldammer in the third quarter. The ensuing extra point from Goldammer pushed the score to 24-0 in favor of the Wolverines.
Wilmot did not put points on the board until late in the game.
Quarterback AJ Frisby ran for a 14-yard touchdown late in the third quarter, and the Panthers trialed 14-6 after a failed two-point conversion.
In the fourth quarter, Frisby threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Brenner, and Wilmot trailed 24-13 following the extra point.
Keller led the Wolverines in rushing with 187 yards on 17 carries, and scored three touchdowns.
Dominic Miller rushed for 54 yards on 12 carries. Quarterback Joe Schauer passed for 40 yards on four completions. Aaron Chapman caught three passes for 27 yards.
“We had more big plays,” Bakken said, “We were more consistent. Joe completed some passes, and we weren’t so one-dimensional.”
Defensively, Wilmot’s only scores came late in the game. Bakken said the Wolverines had players on the field who had not yet seen a lot of playing time.
“ Defensively, the kids put themselves in the right position to make plays,” Bakken said. “We didn’t give up the big play. They had to earn all their yards. Their scoring drives took a lot of time off the clock.”
Waterford’s opponent this week, Burlington, put up 440 yards of offense Sept. 8 in a 50-28 SLC loss at Badger. The Badgers are ranked 10th in Division 1 in the most recent Wisconsin Football Coaches Association state poll.
Bakken said such a feat against badger is almost impossible, and said he expects a good game against the Demons and their high-powered offense.
“If we give them a seam, or they see some open field, they’re going to put up yards,” Bakken said. “We’ve got to be really disciplined and solid, and limit their offense to as few big plays as possible.”
Bakken said another pivotal piece to victory against Burlington (2-2, 1-1 SLC) will be utilizing a ball control offense, and keeping the Demons’ potent offense on the sidelines.
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