Bulldogs rally past Cardinals to win first outright Dunn-St. Croix football crown in 61 years
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FINAL SCORE — Boyceville sophomore quarterback Carson Roemhild (#17) ran in this 18-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of a road game in Spring Valley. It was Roemhild’s third touchdown of the game. —photo by Shawn DeWitt
by Joel DeWitt
Sports Correspondent
SPRING VALLEY — The Boyceville Bulldogs sported a one-game advantage over Spring Valley heading into the pair’s regular season and conference football finale October 13. A win would secure an outright conference title for the Bulldogs long in the making, while a loss would put them in a tie for the title and reinforce their struggles against the Cardinals, who entered the contest ranked ninth in the Division 7 coaches state poll.
Boyceville was unranked despite being unbeaten.
“We saw this game on the schedule and have been waiting for it all season,” indicated coach Michael Roemhild. He continued, “We have not had success against Spring Valley and even less success at Spring Valley, tonight we were able to end all of that.”
The Bulldogs held perennial conference contender Spring Valley to only 163 total yards on a windy, raining evening to secure a 26-6 victory and remain undefeated on the year and grab the outright Dunn-St. Croix conference championship.
This is Boyceville’s first title since 1999, when it shared the large D-SC championship with Mondovi. It has been 61 years, 1962, since the Bulldogs have won an outright championship in football.
Even though the Bulldogs were able to secure the 20-point win, things didn’t go as smoothly as hoped. The weather conditions made passing the ball difficult, and Spring Valley’s slow-paced offense was controlling the ball in the first half.
FUMBLE — Spring Valley quarterback Cade Stasiek (#10, left) and Boyceville defensive lineman Grant Kaiser (#60) scrambled for the loose football after the Cardinals fumbled in the second half of the squads’ October 13 game in Spring Valley. Stasiek recovered the fumble but the Bulldogs won the game 26-6 to claim their first outright Dunn-St. Croix football championship in 61 years. —photo by Shawn DeWitt
The Cardinals held a 19:39 to 4:21 time of possession advantage in the first half and took the lead with 6:07 left in the half on Diego Schmitt’s 11-yard touchdown run.
The Bulldogs countered on their next possession. Starting on 36-yard line, Braden Roemhild ignited the offense with a 50-yard carry to the Cardinal 14-yard line.
Five plays later Boyceville quarterback Carson Roemhild called his own number and carried the ball across from one yard out to tie the score at six apiece going into halftime.
While Spring Valley controlled the pace of the game in the first half, Boyceville exerted its will in the second.
The second play of the half saw Carson Roemhild connect on a pass play with Caden Wold that covered 54 yards and the touchdown to put Boyceville on top 12-6 with only a minute off the clock in the third quarter.
The Bulldog defense then quashed any hope the Cardinals had in coming back. On back-to-back Cardinal possessions Boyceville held their own when facing fourth downs to get their offense the ball back.
The first was on a fourth-and-four from the Bulldog 26-yard line when Wyatt Goveronski was stuffed prior to reaching the line to gain.
The second was fourth-and-goal from the 16-yard line when a Cardinal receiver was unable to corral the ball and turned the ball over to Boyceville.
After the second stop, Zach Hellendrung took the first carry 81 yard to the Cardinal 3-yard line. Carson Roemhild completed the two-play drive with the carry across the goal line and the 18-6 lead.
Boyceville salted the game away with its first possession of the fourth quarter. Starting on their own 38-yard line, the Bulldogs used 8:38 of game time to secure the win.
A 16-yard pickup by Carson Roemhild put the Bulldogs near midfield. From there the trio of backs in Hellendrung, Branden Roemhild, and Nick Olson pounded the ball downfield on rushing attempts.
Carson Roemhild capped the drive with 4:34 left in the game with a 17-yard carry for the score. A 2-point reception by Landyn Leslie put Boyceville up 26-6.
A late interception by Braden Roemhild put an end to the Cardinals chances and secured the win and outright title for the Bulldogs.
“These guys had one goal tonight; walk away with the conference championship outright,” exclaimed coach Roemhild. “Something that hasn’t been done in Boyceville for 61 years!”
Due to weather conditions, Boyceville (9-0, 7-0) relied heavily on the rushing attack. The team combined for 243 yards on 32 attempts. Hellendrung led the pack with 146 yards on 14 carries. Branden Roemhild added 55 yards.
Through the air, Carson Roemhild was 2-6 for 70 yards. The sophomore QB also added three rushing touchdowns. Wold had a single catch that went 54 yards for a touchdown.
The Bulldogs will pivot to the playoffs as they earned a top seed in the WIAA Division 7 bracket.
“I am very proud of our guys, but we can’t settle for just this,” stated coach Roemhild. “Our focus is on our home game against Clear Lake this Friday.”
Boyceville will host conference foe Clear Lake in the opening round of the playoffs on October 20 at 7 p.m. The Bulldogs traveled to Clear Lake on September 29 and took home the win 50-7.
Clear Lake (4-5, 3-4) finished in sixth place in conference action.