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It could be said Pecatonica-Argyle football players won the war ....but 'lost the battle' last weekend - but then again, who's counting and what really counts? Sometimes it's just fulfilling to have the opportunity to play a football game.
The Vikings had already 'won' by late last week when Southwestern High School athletic department officials had forfeited Saturday's scheduled Six Rivers Conference football match-up (due to COVID-19 exposures dating well backward into the previous week) and Pecatonica-Argyle picked up a "W' in the conference standings for the Saturday, Oct. 9 game date, moving to 2-6 overall, with yes, with what's technically scored as a 2-0 victory for the Vikings.
Coach Larry Green's team will bid farewell to the 2021 season tomorrow (Friday, Oct. 15) in what has, by now, developed into a battle to escape last place in the Six Rivers Conference gridiron standings.
On the sod, so-to-speak, and desperately in need of an opponent, any opponent, (in order to stage a homecoming Saturday matinee game for Argyle's school district and alumni - in town for 'Homecoming-2021, - the Pec-Argyle program was grateful to have the Monroe Cheesemakers varsity reserve unit of players consent to being the foe for Saturday's 2 p.m. football game.
Though providing plenty of entertainment, the game last Saturday possesses an 'exhibition' status and as such, is uncountable and no statistics accumulated in the exhibition game between one school cooperative's varsity and another unit's 'varsity reserves' are included in any season or career or conference records, nor in any WIAA overall football statistics.
Monroe High School, in WIAA football circles, is currently a D-3 school ('for' football) with 717 grades' 9-12 students this autumn. Pecatonica and Argyle, schools that both have been shrinking, gradually, in grades 9-12 student enrollment (collectively) across the past five football seasons (the two schools, combined, had 226 total 9-12 students just four seasons ago - in 2017), but fell under the 200 enrollment mark 'this' autumn and currently list 198 'total' students from 'both' high schools, combined, (via WIAA statistical data), for the current school year.
Though unrelated to what became of Saturday's Monroe jayvees' match-up, coach Toby Golembiewski's Cheesemakers 'varsity, (7-1, 6-0) after recently departing the always tough Badger Conference, are enjoying a banner season in their new league (for football), the Rock Valley Conference and along with another 'former' Badger Conference school (for football) - meaning Madison Edgewood - those two newcomers (Monroe and Edgewood are both undefeated in conference action to date. The Monroe varsity and the Edgewood varsity teams, in fact, will decide the Rock Valley football crown tomorrow (Friday) night on the synthetic turf on East Washington Avenue's Breese Stevens Field in downtown Madison.
Nevertheless, the Monroe jayvees, from a D-3 school, and the D-6 Pecatonica-Argyle varsity cooperative, provided fans with a hard-fought, very close game of exhibition football Saturday with the visiting Cheesemakers forging a 20-18 win at Legion Community Park.
The Vikings' quarterback, Hunter Enloe, completed 10 of 21 passes for 110 yards; Pec-Argyle receiver Kegun Brunker had five catches for 65 yards; Pec-Argyle had 24 rushes for 114 yards and the running game was led by Kaden Hartwig's 48 yards on 9 carries while teammate Tanner Vaade added 46 yards on 10 carries. The Vikes had 11 first downs but allowed 267 rushing yards and 22 passing yards
"We missed some key passing connections throughout the game and had a couple of passes dropped that looked like touchdowns," lamented Coach Green after the game. "I thought our offensive line did a decent job with protection and run blocking. We established a couple of nice drives during the game but came up just short. Defensively, Alex Gilbertson had 16 tackles and Tayte Hirsch added 12, both from their linebacker positions and one of our defensive backs, Kaden Hartwig, added 11 tackles."
"I loved our effort all game. We just ran out of time and came up short. Next up is Iowa-Grant Friday night. They play hard and will come out and hit you if you are not ready. Our kids will work hard in practice this weekend and will get ready to finish the season with a win," added Green. As for the power teams atop the Six Rivers and heading into the final week of the season, Black Hawk-Warren, Potosi-Cassville and River Ridge find themselves currently in a three way tie in first place - with one game to play. Potosi-Cassville is at Fennimore Friday while Black Hawk-Warren is at River Ridge. All three teams are 5-1 in league play. conversely, Pecatonica-Argyle, Iowa Grant and Southwestern are all in a three way tie for last place with 1-5 records.