Box Score
The Warhawk football team won its nineteenth consecutive Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game on Saturday as they defeated previously unbeaten UW-Stevens Point 31-14 at Goerke Field in Stevens Point.
A tight first half contained much of the closeness of the game, but the Warhawks (6-1) were able to control the ball and the clock in the second half of the game to pull away.
UW-Stevens Point, 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the WIAC, was first on the scoreboard as they scored on a sixteen yard touchdown pass from Jake Swank to Brad Kalsow less than four minutes into the game. The touchdown was Swank's tenth of the season and Kalsow's seventh. The touchdown capped a sixty-three yard drive by the Pointers.
The Warhawks, 6-1 and 5-0, were able to answer the score on their first drive of the game. Danny Jones (Pleasanton, CA/Amador Valley) (senior, Pleasanton, CA/Amador Valley) found John Novak (Michigan City, IN/Michigan City) (sophomore, Michigan City, IN) in the end zone on a third and six from the UW-Stevens Point seventeen yard line. The touchdown came on a sixty-nine yard drive that ate up roughly five minutes on the clock.
The Warhawks got the ball back after a Stevens Point punt and drove to set up a fifty yard field goal for kicker Jeff Schebler (Davenport, IA/Assumption) (sophomore, Davenport, Iowa/Assumption) but he pushed the kick wide right and the Warhawks and the game remained tied.
On the Pointers' ensuing drive, UW-W's Ben Farley (Brookfield/East) (senior, Brookfield/East) grabbed his fourth interception of the year, but the Warhawks were unable to capitalize and wound up punting.
Schebler got a chance to make right on his previous miss when the Warhawks drove in to Pointer territory to set up a thirty-one yard attempt which Schebler knocked through the uprights to give the Warhawks the 10-7 lead. The Warhawks had got as close as the Pointer sixteen on the drive, but back to back penalties pushed the Warhawks out of the red zone. It was Schebler's twenty-seventh career field goal, moving him in to second place in the UW-W career record book.
On UW-W's next possession the Warhawks' Justin Beaver (Palmyra/Palmyra-Eagle) (senior, Palmyra-Eagle) tore off twenty-four yards on the first play of the drive. A pass interference call later in the drive kept the Warhawks alive and a twenty-six yard touchdown pass from Jones to Neil Mrkvicka (Greendale/Greendale) (senior, Greendale) followed to give the Warhawks a 17-7 lead. The touchdown, Jones' second of the game and tenth of the season, ended a seventy-six yard drive by the Warhawks.
On the very next possession by Stevens Point answered with of touchdown of their own to tighten the score to 17-14. Mike Ferron ran in with 1:30 remaining in the half to conclude the seventy yard drive by the Pointers.
The second half involved no scoring for the Pointers. but the Warhawks scored on their first drive when Jones connected with Mrkvicka, his second of the game and third of the season, for a four yard touchdown reception to cap off a seventy yard.
Later in the third quarter the Warhawks scored on another Jones pass, his fourth TD toss of the game, this time a one-yarder to freshman wide receiver Aaron Rusch (Hartford/Hartford) (Hartford).
The Pointers were on the brink of a score with less than a minute remaining in the game but Andy Murray (Mount Horeb/Mount Horeb) (senior, Mount Horeb) picked off the Jake Swank pass to end the scoring. Murray's interception was the twelfth of his career, tied for fourth in the Warhawk record book.
For the game, Jones totaled 239 yards on 23-33 passing, one interception and the four touchdowns. Beaver racked up 216 yards on forty one rushes to add to his school and conference record rushing totals.
Defensively, AJ Raebel (Cary Grove, IL/Cary Grove) (senior, Cary Grove, Ill.) led the way with nine total tackles, two solo, while Tristan Borzick (Kenosha/Tremper) registered eight. AJ Raebel (Cary Grove, IL/Cary Grove) added nine tackles to his career total, giving him 275 and moving him into fifth place on the school career list.
Several Warhawks moved up in the record book during the game. Nick Croak (Muskego/Muskego) (senior, Muskego) moved closer to first place in career punting yards, in the WIAC records as well, upping his total to 8,942 yards. Croak trails former Warhawk Joel Gmack by fifty-five total yards.
Whitewater will host Mary Hardin-Baylor on October 27 at 1:00 pm at Perkins Stadium. The match-up will feature two of the top three teams in the country, according to D3Football.com, as Mary Hardin-Baylor holds the number two ranking and the Warhawks number three.
For additional information:
Lance Leipold, UW-W Head Coach, 262-472-1453
UW-Whitewater football site: http://www.uwwsports.com/index.asp?path=football
