Boyceville uses first-half scores and strong ground game to defeat Glenwood City 24-10
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by Joel DeWitt
Sports Correspondent
BOYCEVILLE — There was a lot on the line October 8th as Boyceville hosted Glenwood City in their annual football contest.
Both teams were looking to stay near the top of the Dunn-St. Croix conference. Both teams were looking for bragging rights. And most importantly, both teams were looking to secure a spot in the post-season WIAA playoffs.
It would be the Bulldogs who would come out looking good on the evening, as they controlled the tempo much of the game and pulled out a 24-10 victory over rival Glenwood City in a fog-filled D-SC affair.
“Rivalry games are always great to play especially when you end up on the winning side,” commented Bulldog coach Michael Roemhild. “This was a huge win for us. The fans were loud again, and the fog just added to the mystique of Friday night football.”
While Boyceville controlled both the total yardage (359 to 179) and time of possession (29:35 to 18:25), it would take a late fourth-quarter touchdown for the Bulldogs to secure the win.
“I was very proud of our kids. We faced adversity several times with injuries, position changes and calls on key plays,” Hilltopper Coach Shane Strong said. “We were playing a team with incredible talent; our kids were in position to win that game in the fourth quarter.”
The first half was controlled in all aspects by Boyceville. After receiving the opening kickoff, and starting on their own 30-yard line, Boyceville would go to their ground game to expose the Hilltopper defense. A 30-yard gain around the left end on third and six by Braden Roemhild would put Boyceville in Hilltopper territory.
Two plays later, Bash Nielson would take the handoff, find an opening, and take it 40 yards for the touchdown and the 6-0 lead. Glenwood City would hold Boyceville on the two-point attempt, the first of four times the Hilltoppers would stuff the Bulldogs on conversions.
After a series of punts, Boyceville would once again find itself with the ball. This possession would again be dominated by big plays by the Bulldogs. Nielson would have carries of 17 and 23 yards to set the Bulldogs up on the Hilltopper 26-yard line.
Glenwood City would hold Boyceville on three consecutive rushing attempts, setting up a fourth and four. However, Nielson would strike again. A 6-yard fourth down conversion followed by a 14-yard touchdown rush on first down would extend the Bulldog lead to 12-0 at the 9:54 mark of the second quarter.
The Hilltoppers would attempt to get something going on their next possession. Starting the series on their own 30-yard line, the Hilltoppers would push the ball to Boyceville’s 40-yard line. A deep pass down the sidelines would see Bulldog defender Caden Wold make a great play and intercept Bryce Wickman’s pass on the Bulldog 8-yard line.
This next series would see Boyceville capitalize on their good fortune. On the fourth play of the drive, Nick Olson would take the handoff and go 61 yards to the endzone. That touchdown would put the score at 18-0.
After trading punts, Glenwood City would start on their own 17-yard line with 3:16 remaining. Down 18 points, they were looking to get something going before time expired in the half.
The first play saw Brady McCarthy run the ball 28 yards to put Glenwood City near midfield. Later in the drive, Wickman would connect with Max Janson and McCarthy for first-down conversions, the second coming with 14 seconds left in the half.
Wickman would hustle his team to the line and spike the ball to stop the clock. Senior placekicker Marcis DeSmith was called on to attempt a 28-yard field goal. DeSmith sent the ball high through the uprights as time expired to put Glenwood City on the board and cut the Bulldogs lead to 18-3.
The Hilltoppers would try to continue the momentum in the second half. On their second possession, the Hilltoppers would go to the ground game to find success. Starting on its own 48-yard line, Glenwood City would drive 52 yards in 10 plays for the touchdown to cut the lead to 18-10 at the 11:20 mark of the fourth quarter.
On that drive, Janson would be the primary back as he carried the ball on nine of the ten plays. Two big chunk plays of 14 yards apiece put the Hilltoppers in position to score, and it would be Janson from one yard out on fourth down to cap the drive.
“Max is a great player and very determined,” Strong exclaimed. “Our offensive line played much better in the second half. When he has room to run, he is tough to stop.”
With their lead dwindling, the Bulldogs wound find some renewed motivation on offense. Starting on their won 21-yard line, they would pound the ball down the field using a trio of backs. Big gains by Olson (11 yards), Nielson (nine yards), and Tyler Dormanen (18 yards) would move the chains and put Boyceville in Glenwood City Territory.
Sitting on their own 25-yard line, the Hilltoppers defense would stiffen. Holding the Bulldogs for negative yardage on the first three plays and would set up a fourth and 13.
Boyceville would go to the air for the second play in a row, this time Ira Bialzik would connect with Wold in the endzone for the touchdown and the 24-10 lead with 3:52 remaining in the game.
“We didn’t really have to pass the ball tonight, but Ira and Caden connected on a fourth-down TD that sealed the game for us and gave us breathing room,” said Roemhild of the long strike.
The Hilltoppers lost the ball on a fumble on the first play after kickoff, which was recovered by the Bulldogs. Two first down conversions by Boyceville were enough to run out the clock and seal the Bulldogs’ victory.
The win puts Boyceville at 4-2 in conference play, 6-2 overall, and keeps them tied for second place with Elmwood/Plum City. The win also secured a playoff berth in the upcoming WIAA torunament which begins October 22.
“Offensively, our line was very dominant,” Roemhild commented. “We had to make some position changes up front due to an injury earlier in the week and I thought the whole line came together to help each other out.”
He continued, “I think as a team we averaged seven yards a carry. All backs ran hard when their number was called.”
As a team, Boyceville rushed for 339 yards, averaging over seven yards a carry. The main workhouse was Nielson with 183 yards on 27 carries. Olson, Roemhild, and Dormanen also had significant contributions with 90, 51, and 31 yards, respectively.
Boyceville will wrap up the regular season Friday, October 15th when they travel to Clear Lake for their 7 p.m. matchup.
For the Hilltoppers, the loss drops their record to an even 3-3 in conference and 4-4 overall. They will need a victory over winless Colfax this Friday to secure a spot in the playoffs.
While the offensive output was one sided on paper, the Hilltoppers did a much better job of shutting down the Bulldog offense in the second half. Boyceville only managed 108 yards after half.
“We talked about our defensive game plan and the things we needed to fix to make it work,” Strong said of his team’s second half performance. “I told them to focus on the controllables and their effort.”
Janson led his team offensively. He had 91 total yards with 75 coming on the ground on 13 carries. Wickman complete seven of his 13 passes for 76 yards. McCarthy paced the way with two receptions for 39 yards.
The loss is not the only thing the Hilltoppers will need to bounce back from, injuries have also taken a toll on the team and could impact next week’s lineup.
“Our only adjustments will be our personnel changes due to injuries,” Strong mentioned of the upcoming game. “We had to play some kids Friday with no varsity experience. This week we will need to get them more reps to prep them.”
Glenwood City will host Colfax for its annual homecoming game this Friday, October 15th. Game time is 7 p.m.