October 27, 2022 at 11:24 a.m.
Warriors pound the ground to eliminate Cardinals
For good measure the Warriors took an interception in for a score and ended Highland's season 56-20 at WIAA Division 7 Level 1 of the playoffs.
The Warriors also tacked on 70 yards passing as Reed McNett completed three of four and a touchdown.
It was no secret what the Warriors would be trying to do said coach Mike Aide.
"Black Hawk did exactly what we thought they we do," Aide said. "They are very good at pounding the ball. We threw everything we had at them but in the end they were just dominant."
The Warriors had a 24-6 lead at the end of the first quarter after scoring on three big plays....a 45 yard interception return, a 90 yard run and a 68 yard run.
Highland put up six the first quarter when Cohen Healy connected with John Dreischmeier for a 68 yard pass play.
Black Hawk did not let up the second quarter as they scored on a 49 yard run and a 17 yard McNett to Lucas Milz pass play.
Caden Lindner grabbed a pass from Healy for a 32 yard scoring play and Colton Frost carried for the two point conversion that made the score 40-14.
Two more Black Hawk scores came on short yardage runs in the third frame for their 56 points.
Highland scored once more on a Healy to Michael Esser 58 yard bomb for their 20 points.
For the Warriors, McNutt scored twice as did Landon Mahoney and Milz. One of Milz's scores came on a pass play.
Healy's arm got a workout as he was 15 for 31 for 273 yards and two touchdowns. He also had nine carries for 23 yards. Aide said his passing had to keep the Cardinals going.
"We knew that our run game was going to have some issues versus Black Hawks defense," Aide said. "We felt our passing game was going to be our strong point. Unfortunately we got behind early which forced us to go to the passing game immediately. Our offensive line gave Cohen Healy time and we had success with it. Cohen made some plays with his ability to move in the pocket and which gave our receivers time to get open. Cohen had a great game Friday night."
Darren Laufenberg picked up 23 yards on eight tries while Dax Smelzer carried twice for 11. Bryce Bollant had one attempt for two yards.
Esser caught four passes for 85 yards, Dreischmeier two for 72 and Lindner two for 51. Laufenberg added 40 on three nabs and Frost caught three for 26.
Bollant caught the other pass for no gain.
Leading tacklers were Sam Talo and Tyson Imhoff both had six with Laufenberg, Lindner and Bryce Nankey all adding five.
"I thought we did one hell of job going toe to toe with them. Their size was a problem for us but our players never gave up and played with a ton of heart," Aide said.
Aide recapped the season and gave compliments to several Cardinals.
"John Dreischmeier has had a very good season at both sides of the ball. I felt John has gotten better each week. John had a hell of game Friday. He definitely left it all on the field."
"Michael Esser, Bryce Bollant, Darren Laufenberg, Wes Kraisinger, John Dreischmeier and Colton Frost all were very good this season. We had a good mix of talent. We were pretty successful in the passing and Cohen definitely had plenty of weapons around him."
"I felt we showed our inexperience at the beginning of the season but got better each week. We had hurdles that we had to overcome but in the end I see a team that has a ton of upside next year. As always we need to get bigger and stronger if we want to win a conference championship and advance further in the playoffs."
Aide gave special mention to the seniors.
"I'm very happy for our seniors. Cohen Healy was very solid at quarterback this season for us. Sam Talo made big strides playing offensive line and defensive line. Blake Dax was fantastic at center and middle linebacker. Bryce Bollant's speed was a game changer and kept defenses on their toes. Colton Frost was a leader on and off the field. Dax Smelzer was dependable and hard working every day during practice and in the games. Caden Lindner was a team leader on the field and made everyone around him better because of it. Each one of these young men meant so much to this program and we were very lucky to have them play for us this season. They will be missed dearly."
