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After allowing the Cambridge-Isanti Bluejackets to score 13 straight points in the second quarter to cut the Wildcats lead to 21-20 at halftime, the Wildcats came out on fire in the third quarter.  They forced several turnovers and scored on their first four possessions to take a 48-20 lead and went on to win 48-33 in front of the home crowd on Friday, September 6.

Cole Stilp fielded the game’s opening kickoff at the ten-yard line and ran it back to midfield to give the Wildcats great starting field position.  And they didn’t waste it.  On first down from the 24, Stilp took a handoff and went up the middle.  He was stopped momentarily but broke loose to the right and headed for the front corner of the end zone.  He was dragged out of bounds just short of the goal line.  Fullback Braxton Bender-Ehlke took it up the middle for a touchdown, and after Brycen Morley’s extra point, the Wildcats led 7-0 with just over three minutes gone in the first half.

On the first Bluejacket possession, they fumbled at their own 35 and the Wildcats recovered.  Three plays later, on third and one from the 26, quarterback Kellen Meissner faked a handoff and ran around left end.  The Wildcat offensive line did a great job sealing off the corner, and Meissner made some nifty moves to avoid being tackled and ran down the sideline into the end zone for a touchdown.  The extra point was good, and the Wildcats led 14-0 with over six minutes remaining in the first quarter.

After the Bluejackets scored on their next possession to cut the Wildcat lead to 13-7, the Wildcat offense went right back to work.  An eight-play drive was highlighted by a 23-yard run around right end by Meissner.  On second and eight from the Cambridge 35, Jadon Greene took a handoff through a big hole up the middle, cut right and ran toward the end zone.  He avoided a tackle at the ten and was shoved out of bounds at the one.  Bender-Ehlke plowed into the end zone on the next play, and, after the extra point, the Wildcats led 21-7.  On their ensuing possession, the Bluejackets used pass plays of 28 and 46 yards to get down to the Wildcat 10.  A touchdown pass on third and goal from the 15 cut the Wildcat lead to 21-13.  After the Wildcats went three and out on their next possession and had to punt, the Bluejackets took over at their own 40-yard line.  A six-play drive was capped off by an eleven-yard touchdown run and, after the extra point, Cambridge had cut the lead to Wildcat lead to 21-20 with just over two minutes left in the first half.

The fun really started for the Wildcats after halftime.  Facing third and 14 from their own 26, the Bluejackets completed a pass, but the Bulldogs forced the receiver to fumble and recovered at the Cambridge 45.  Six plays later, Bender-Ehlke went over from the six, and, after a missed extra point, the Wildcats led 27-20.  On the ensuing Cambridge possession, the Bluejackets went for it on fourth and nine from their own 49, and the pass fell incomplete.  Five plays later, Meissner took it in himself from the three, and, after a successful extra point, the Wildcats led 34-20 with under a minute to go in the third quarter.

The Wildcats defense forced anther fumble on the next Bluejacket drive and recovered it at the Cambridge 38.  A pitch to the right to Jadon Green picked up 19 yards.  On first down from the 18, Meissner was flushed right and flipped a pass to a wide-open Reese Nasvik at the two, and he waltzed into the end zone for a touchdown.  The extra point made it 41-20 with 9:57 left in the game.  After yet another Bluejacket fumble, the Wildcats recovered and took over at their own 41.  On  third and six from the 45, Meissner rolled left and lofted a pass to the left just as he got hit.  Receiver Blake Siefert jumped up to catch the 50-50 ball at the 30-yard line and, as the defender fell down, Siefert ran untouched down the left sideline into the end zone for a touchdown.  After the extra point, the Wildcats led 48-20 with 5:30 to go in the game.  The Wildcats substituted freely after that, and Cambridge added a couple of meaningless late touchdowns to make the final score 48-33.

Wildcat head coach Ryan Anderson said “In the first quarter, we were rolling on offense and shutting them down on defense.  But in the second quarter, we missed too many tackles on defense and let them back in the game with a 13-0 run.  We came out after halftime and played as a different team.  We kept forcing fumbles on defense, and the offense moved the ball at will.  And we spread the ball around on offense.  We had 317 yards rushing for the game, but no one back had over 100 yards.  We also had 74 yards passing.  We just got it rolling.  Brycen Morley had another nice game for us at outside safety, with five solo tackles, two assists and an interception. Riley Estes had four tackles, two assists and two sacks.  And Jacob Grabow, Logan Carlson and Reese Nasvik were flying around on defense, making plays for us.”

Football Notes

The 2-0 Wildcats will head to Plymouth to take on the Providence Academy Lions (1-1) tomorrow night at 7 p.m.  Last season, the Wildcats beat the Lions 45-34 at home.

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