By Mike Ramczyk
Sports Editor
Waterford football gave Burlington every opportunity to win Friday night.
The Wolverines punted the ball away to the Demons a few times in the fourth quarter. Dylan Malecki tossed an interception, and Waterford’s offense was in stall mode. The visiting Wolverines clung to a 13-10 lead the entire final quarter, but Burlington, which led 10-6 at halftime, couldn’t get over the hump.
Waterford senior Jake Bauer didn’t make life any easier for Burlington.
The shifty, yet bruising runner gained a first down on 3rd and 13 late and earned two subsequent first downs in the final minutes to provide the dagger in Waterford’s 13-10 victory.
After the game, Waterford coach Adam Bakken showed his players this week’s Waterford Post article, which had a prediction of Burlington winning, 17-10. Apparently, the Wolverines, who improved to 3-2 overall and 2-1 in the Southern Lakes Conference with the victory, used the article as motivation.
“It was all the offensive line,” Bauer said. “On that 3rd and 13, the line just kept blocking and never gave up. We’re trying to pick things up more. We have good chemistry. We’re more chippy in practice. At the end of the day, we’re all a team.”
Bakken said his defense stopped Burlington’s offense, which was quoted as “explosive” in the newspaper article.
“We played harder and executed,” he said. “We shut down their offense. We found a way to make plays when we had to.”
Burlington’s best chance to take the lead was in the beginning of the fourth quarter. The Demons drove deep into Waterford territory only to have a holding penalty push them back. It was fourth down and long from the Waterford 25, and Burlington kicker Brian Dankle came on for the game-tying field goal.
The snap and hold were perfect, but the kick veered wide left. All Waterford had to do was run out the clock, but the Wolverines gave the ball back on a Mark Wallace interception. On the very next play, Burlington coughed up the ball and Waterford got it back.
Waterford ended up punting, and Burlington embarked on its final drive with three minutes left. Working from the shotgun, quarterback Brad Burling hit Skyler Vandusseldorg on a pivotal 3rd and long for a first down at the Burlington 25. However, an offensive pass interference call and a holding penalty pinned Burlington back deep in its own territory. Then, on 3rd and long, Burling was sacked.
The Demons punted, giving Waterford the ball at the 50-yard line with under three minutes. After two stuffs and two Demon timeouts, Waterford faced 3rd and 13. A first down would ultimately seal the deal, but a punt would give Burlington’s offense one more shot.
Bauer jogged to his left on the sweep play and found nothing, but his line kept blocking. When the senior cut it back to the middle, he found nothing but daylight and scampered 13 yards. After a measurement confirmed the decisive first down, Bauer wasn’t finished. He muscled through the Demon defensive line and carried tacklers with him on two more first downs.
Burlington dropped to 3-2 overall and 1-2 in the SLC. This marked the fifth straight season Waterford has toppled Burlington.
You have to go back to 1996 to find the last time Burlington beat Waterford. The Demons’ quarterback back then? Tony Romo.
Burlington returns home for homecoming against winless Westosha Central Friday. Waterford travels to much-improved Elkhorn.
After a 1-2 start, Waterford has reeled off two defensive-led triumphs over two quality opponents. But can the Wolverines keep it up the rest of the season?
“It is a true team, and there isn’t one bit of selfishness,” Bakken said. “We’ve stressed senior leadership, and they’ve done a great job. When they do things correctly, it’s the best senior leadership that I’ve ever had in any program.”
Visit our new Facebook page, Standard Press Sports, for an exclusive photo gallery from tonight’s Burlington and Catholic Central games. And check out Mike Ramczyk’s predictions in Thursday’s Burlington Standard Press. Also, follow Ramczyk @mikeramczyk17 on Twitter for area sports updates.
Friday night saw a lot of big plays from the host ‘Toppers, and they wasted little time finding the end zone.
It was a successful homecoming game, as Central exploded to a 28-8 halftime lead and never looked back.
Catholic Central is now 2-3 overall and 2-1 in the Metro Classic Conference.
Most of the onslaught came via the air. Quarterback Ben Heiligenthal was on point, completing 11-of-15 passes for 203 yards and four touchdowns, all to different receivers.
After an Adam Oehlers score made it 7-0, Heiligenthal found Tyler Burzawa for a 39-yard hookup to make it 14-0 early in the second quarter. Burzawa used his top-notch speed to outrun several Lutheran defenders.
After Racine cut the lead to 14-8, Heiligenthal flipped a screen to Cole Kresken, who showed some ability of his own on a 52-yard scoring scamper. Kresken’s run was sprung by a flattening block from Tegan Miles, who also caught a touchdown in the game.
Kresken added a 1-yard score to make it 28-8 at the half.
Heiligenthal added two more touchdowns tosses in the third quarter, one to Miles and another to Jake Surges. Zach Frederick finished the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 12-yard run.
Catholic Central hosts Shoreland Lutheran (1-4) Friday night.
Other area scores
Lake Geneva Badger 48, Westosha Central 14
Delavan-Darien 21, Union Grove 14
Wilmot 35, Elkhorn 0
Big Foot 63, Beloit Turner 0
Brodhead/Juda 52, Clinton 26
Franklin 14, Oak Creek 6
Muskego 24, Kettle Moraine 7
Arrowhead 24, Mukwonago 3
Racine Case 40, Kenosha Bradford 35
East Troy 62, McFarland 15
Evansville/Albany 21, Whitewater 20
Illinois
Richmond-Burton 48, Marengo 23
Grayslake North 21, Johnsburg 13
Lakes 35, Antioch 0
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