Boyceville football dominates both side of ball for 49-0 shutout of Independence/Gilmanton
BULLDOG SENIOR Caden Wold tried to avoid an Independence/Gilmanton defender during the season opener at home Friday, August 18. Wold led all Boyceville receivers with four catches for 67 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Bulldogs 49-0 shutout over the Indees.
—photo by Jacob Maes Photography
by Joel DeWitt
Sports Correspondent
BOYCEVILLE — With the goal of winning a conference championship in mind, the 2023 Boyceville football team started the season off in grand fashion against Independence/Gilmanton. Like the matchup between these two squads the previous season, Boyceville manhandled the Indees on Friday, August 18.
The stout Boyceville defense forced Independence/Gilmanton to finish with a -5 total yards, while its offense had 325 total yards and six touchdowns to easily take home a 49-0 victory.
“These guys have been waiting for this night since our loss in the playoffs last year,” indicated head coach Michael Roemhild. “We started out a little slow offensively, but our defense was hitting on all cylinders which gave our offense some confidence and eased the nerves.”
The defense indeed was the catalyst on the evening. Nick Olson’s interception on the Indees second possession would ignite the Bulldog’s offensive fuse.
The interception put the Bulldogs in great field position just shy of midfield. It took Boyceville only three plays to capitalize when Zach Hellendrung scored the first touchdown of the year on a 28-yard carry. A pass from Carson Roemhild to Braden Roemhild for the PAT put the Bulldogs up 8-0 with 5:33 left in the first quarter.
The subsequent Indee possession would see them only go backwards. After losing ten yards on three plays, Independence/Gilmanton punter misplayed the snap resulting in the Bulldogs taking over on the Indees 4 yard line.
The Bulldogs wasted no time as Carson Roemhild connected with Caden Wold on the very next play for the 4-yard pass/catch and the 16-0 lead after the 2-point PAT.
A quick three-and-out once again gave the Bulldogs excellent field position on the Independence/Gilmanton 42 yard line. A 24-yard Roemhild to Roemhild connection put the Bulldogs inside the red zone.
Five plays later those two would once again connect, this one for three yards and the touchdown. The 2-point conversion gave Boyceville the 24-0 advantage with 00:24 left in the first quarter.
The hard hitting Boyceville defense force another short series by Independence/Gilmanton, setting the Bulldogs up on their own half of the field.
Three plays later, all completed passes, the Bulldogs scored their fourth touchdown. Carson Roemhild found Devin Halama for 13-yards to get things going. Back-to-back completions to Wold, the second for 31-yards and the score extended the lead to 30-0 with 7:48 remaining in the half.
It took Boyceville only 2:47 of game clock to find the end zone again. After a short Indees punt, the Bulldogs started on the Indees 35 yard line. Two passes later Carson Roemhild connected with Braden Roemhild for the 17-yard gain and the score. A Hellendrung PAT put the lead at 37-0.
LOOKING TO GAIN some more yards following a reception was Boyceville senior receiver Braden Roemhild (#24) during a non-conference home game against Independence/Gilmanton August 18. Reomhild finished with three catches for 44 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Bulldogs 49-0 victory.
—photo by Jacob Maes Photography
Two plays later, the Bulldog defense got involved in the scoring spree. Olson once again intercepted a pass from Indees quarterback Xavier Santillan. This time he returned it 23 yards to the end zone giving his team the 43-0 lead into halftime.
The second half brought a couple changes to the game, a running clock due to a 35-point advantage and the Bulldogs reserves getting a chance to shine.
The final Bulldog score came late in the third quarter on a 2-yard run by Mark Knops. That touchdown put the Boyceville advantage at 49-0. The Bulldogs salted the remainder of the game away to secure the win to move to 1-0.
“It is always great to get a win, especially in front of our home crowd and during Pickle Fest,” coach Roemhild indicated. “The support our team gets from our fans is amazing.”
It was a complete team effort on the offensive side of the ball for the Bulldogs. Nine Bulldogs contributed to the running game on the evening notching 188 total yards. Hellendrung led the pack with 42 yards on only three carries and a single score.
Carson Roemhild was 9-13 on the night for 140 yards and four touchdowns. He completed passes to four different receivers. Leading the way was Wold with 63 yards on four catches and two scores. Braden Roemhild was not far behind with three catches for 44 yards and 2 touchdowns.
“I was happy with how everyone did their job, played fast, and played physical,” coach Roemhild summed up his team performance. “We had guys in different spots than last year and they exceeded my expectations.”
The Bulldogs will hit the road to take on Cameron on August 25 for their second and final non-conference game of the year.
“Our focus is off this game now and on to Cameron,” said Roemhild. “They will be fast on turf and will have a good passing attack that we will have to try to contain.”
Cameron beat up on Dunn-St. Croix member Clear Lake in the opener 32-0. Their passing game accounted for 205 of the 376 total yards in the game. Game time in Cameron will be 7:00 p.m.