October 11, 2011 at 10:53 a.m.
Hillmen run past Dodgers
The Hillmen had 35 of those points on the board by halftime and punched in 13 the third quarter. The safety came in the last frame.
Garrison Jones scored three times and Nathan Fielder twice for the Hillmen. Dylan Tranel and Brad Saunders had the other two six pointers.
Firas Jadaan kicked all the extra points.
The Dodgers scored in the second quarter to make it 14-8 but never got close again. Austyn Whitlach recorded the Dodgeville touchdown and Payton Hanson ran in the conversion.
"Austyn dropped back to pass and as he was set to throw a defensive lineman came from the outside," Dodgeville coach Scott Tolzman said. "A lane opened up and Austyn took off. He got some good downfield blocks and was able to score."
But the Hillmen were too solid to overcome.
"They have a well balanced offense and can run and throw," Tolzman said. "They have a very good defense that plays aggressive and tough, making it hard to run against. If they have a weak spot it is pass defense but then you have to have time to throw."
Tolzman felt the Dodgeville line did a good job giving Whitlach a chance to throw.
One of his main targets was tall and rangy senior Jake Bechen who did not play football last year. He caught five passes for 50 yards.
"Jake has good hands and decent speed," Tolzman said. "His size helps too. He has been a good tight end with us and is a good blocker. He gives us another weapon."
"Overall I thought we did a good job the first half but we gave up too many short fields," said Tolzman. "We were able to move the ball but Fielder's touchdown off a pass interception hurt us. Platteville is big and has good speed."
"Our kids played hard but Platteville took control and wore us down," Tolzman said. "They ran the ball better the second half and we could not match their size and speed."
It won't be easier this week as the Dodgers head to Lancaster to play the other undefeated team in the SWC.
"They are not as big as in the past but have good speed," Tolzman said about the Flying Arrows. "I would say they are the fastest team in the SWC. We need to contain their running game which no one has done yet. We cannot give up big plays or short fields. We need to move the ball ourselves to keep their offense off the field. "We should have everyone back Friday night."
