HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Hodags snap GNC losing streak at Ashland
RHS wins first league game since 2013
STAR JOURNAL REPORT
For the first time since late in the 2013 season, the Rhinelander High School varsity football team has won a Great Northern Conference game.
The Hodags snapped a 23-game conference losing streak on a soggy Friday night with a 20-12 victory at Ashland.
RHS, which won its first league game in Chris Ferge’s four seasons as head coach, scored first against the Oredockers with 5:49 left in the first quarter on a 5-yard touchdown run by Drake Martin. Joseph Schmitz added the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
Ashland got on the scoreboard with 11:30 left in the second quarter when Jordan Brennan ran into the end zone from 67 yards away. The Hodags held onto a 7-6 lead after the two-point conversion was unsuccessful.
The Oredockers took the lead with 31 seconds left before halftime on a 3-yard touchdown run by Mason Shelvan. Ashland’s lead stayed at 12-7 after the two-point conversion was again unsuccessful.
RHS did all the scoring in the second half. The Hodags pulled back in front with 3:49 left in the third quarter on a 10-yard pass from Logan Freund to Martin. The lead remained at 13-12 after an unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt.
Martin also scored RHS’s final touchdown on an 8-yard run with 8:02 left in the fourth quarter. Schmitz added the extra point to extend the lead to 20-12.
The Hodags, who stopped Ashland’s final offensive drive on downs with less than a minute to play, ended up outgaining the Oredockers in total offense, 279-270 yards.
Of RHS’s 188 rushing yards, Martin accounted for 147 yards on 30 carries with two touchdowns. Freund completed six of 16 passes for 91 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
Ashland gained 204 of its yards on the ground with Brennan recording a team-high 88 yards on 11 carries with a touchdown. Brennan also competed three of nine passes for 44 yards.
The Hodags – whose last win in conference play also came against Ashland with a 30-6 victory Oct. 11, 2013 – improved their season record to 1-4 in the GNC and 2-6 overall. RHS closes out the 2017 season at home this coming Friday against conference rival Lakeland Union High School.
Hodags 20, Ashland 12
Hodags 7 0 6 7 – 20
Ashland 0 12 0 0 – 12
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