HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Hodags down Lumberjacks, snap losing streak
RHS enters GNC play 1-2 overall
STAR JOURNAL REPORT
Following nine consecutive losses dating back to almost a year ago, the Rhinelander High School varsity football team is back on the winning track.
The Hodags won in non-conference action Friday at Mike Webster Stadium over Wausau East, 28-14.
RHS scored first with 9:19 left in the opening quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run by Drake Martin. The lead remained 6-0 after the extra point was unsuccessful.
The Lumberjacks took the lead with 5:30 left in the first quarter when TQ Tidwell scored on an 8-yard touchdown run and Caleb Gruszynski added the extra point.
The Hodags regained the lead with 5:09 left before halftime on a 55-yard touchdown run by Martin. Logan Freund passed to Cole Spaulding for the 2-point conversion to extend the lead to 14-7, which remained the score when the half ended.
After a scoreless third quarter, RHS took a two-touchdown lead with 10:04 left to play on a 5-yard pass from Freund to Martin. Brad Comer added the extra point to give the Hodags a 21-7 advantage.
Wausau East scored its final touchdown with 4:50 remaining in the fourth quarter when Nathan Rodman intercepted a Freund pass and returned it 93 yards. Gruszynski made the extra point to reduce the Lumberjacks’ deficit to 21-14.
RHS closed out the scoring with 2:40 to play with a 10-yard touchdown run by Freund and the extra point by Comer.
The Hodags outgained the Lumberjacks in total offense, 318-176.
RHS tallied 224 net rushing yards with Martin accounting for 214 yards on 38 carries and two running touchdowns. Freund completed five of 18 passes for 94 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Wausau East had 97 passing yards on six completions by Jack Kane. Kane and Caleb Moses each threw an interception in 21 combined attempts for the Lumberjacks. Moses also accounted for 53 of Wausau East’s 79 net rushing yards.
The Hodags – who hadn’t won a game since Aug. 26, 2016, when they recorded a 31-13 non-conference victory over Wittenberg-Birnamwood – improved their 2017 record to 1-2 overall going into this coming Friday’s Great Northern Conference opener at Medford.
Photos by TMK Photography.
Rhinelander 28, Wausau East 14
Wausau East 7 0 0 7 – 14
Rhinelander 6 8 0 14 – 28
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