October 16, 2014 at 9:26 a.m.
Panthers win in dominating fashion
The ball that carried into the end zone was not in the hands of the usual Panther weapon Luke Nowak but instead Josh Haase and Logan Bomkamp did the honors.
Haase struck first with a 29 yard run and the Panthers added a two point conversion on an Isaac Anderson to Colin Price pass.
Then it was Bomkamp's turn and he raced in from five yards away. From there the Panthers raced to a 41-7 win in the SWAL game to keep their play-off hopes alive.
"Josh and Logan are both good backs who play hard. Our blocking was good also," coach Gary Allen said about the Panther drives.
Nowak was not to be denied, however. The senior back scored the next three touchdowns starting with the first score of the second frame, a 10 yard run.
After Montana Lins took a 21 yard Tanner Williamson pass into the end zone for the Chieftains, Nowak scored again. This time he dove in from the one for the first score of the second half. Kyle Soderstrom kicked the conversion.
Before Nowak was done for the night he scored on a 30 yarder late in the third and Soderstrom again converted his kick. Nowak finished with 231 yards on 25 carries.
The last score came courtesy of the second team and Travis Arndt scored on a 12 yard run set up by a sustained drive. Soderstrom kicked the conversion.
Riverdale's usual game plan is to run the ball down the throats of their opponents and the Panthers share the same concept. This time the Panthers took the edge with 65 plays to Riverdale's 49.
Some of that is a credit to the Panther defense.
"Josh Haase led us in tackles but it was a good team effort on defense," Allen said. "The kids played assignment defense and tackled well. Our defense played well and our offense was able to move the ball consistently."
The last piece of the puzzle in the march to a post season berth is Boscobel Friday. The Panthers host the Bulldogs for the SWAL finale.
"Boscobel is an improving team and they are physical. We will need to play well," Allen said.
