This story is sponsored by: Trudeau Construction and The Tile Guys
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
paul@marshfieldareasports.com
Video highlights available at allmarshfield.com.
MARSHFIELD – It took four games, but the Marshfield football team finally put together a complete game.
Behind 152 yards rushing from T.J. Vantassel, 181 yards passing from quarterbacks Chris Stemen and Elliot Ashbeck, and two goal-line stands in the fourth quarter, the Tigers defeated Wausau West 22-7 to even their record at 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the Wisconsin Valley Conference.
Wausau West (0-4, 0-2 WVC) scored on its first possession – a 19-yard touchdown run by Chris Seager – but didn’t find paydirt again as the Tigers defense held their own.
“The guys on the line really stepped it up,” Marshfield coach Denny Goettl said. “It was the first time we were playing the guy (Stuart Rhodes) at left tackle all year, we were playing him at guard. Kudos to him, he had a great night. We had guys playing defensive line, guys were hurt, we had guys from the varsity reserve step right in there and played. It was a great team effort.”
Following West’s touchdown on its opening possession, Marshfield responded with a eight-play, 61-yard drive that ended on a 1-yard touchdown run by Ashbeck to tie the game 7-7.
In the second quarter, the Tigers put together their best drive of the season.
Marshfield went 77 yards on 16 plays, converting twice on fourth down pass plays as Stemen hit Jake Lisiecki for 16 yards and Payton Marshall for 11 yards to keep the drive alive. Vantassel ran in from the 4 on third down to give the Tigers a 13-7 lead after the extra point was missed.
“We played more as a team tonight,” said Stemen, who finished 7 of 18 for 144 yards. “When one unit stepped down, another unit stepped up. Like when I turned the ball over at the end of the first half, our defense stepped up right away and took the ball away.
West looked poised to take the lead when it took over at the 50 with 1:24 left in the third quarter and drove to the Tigers’ 6 on the strength of a 38-yard pass from Travis Schertz to Nate Kuehl. The Marshfield defense stepped up its game, holding the Warriors when Kuehl fumbled on fourth down and Justin Sternweis recovered.
The Tigers then went 91 yards for the game-clinching touchdown. Runs of 17, 13, 8 and 10 yards by Vantassel, and a 43-yard screen pass from Stemen to Vantassel pushed Marshfield down the field. Junior tailback Cody Tarnowski scored his first varsity touchdown from 10 yards out to put the Tigers up 19-7.
John Begotka sacked Schertz on the Warriors’ next possession, forcing a fumble, and Ross Zillman recovered for the Tigers. Sully Luepke kicked a 30-yard field goal on the ensuing possession to give Marshfield a 22-7 lead.
West drove down the field and had fourth-and-goal at the 1 when Evan Mayer dropped a pass in the end zone to turn it over to the Tigers with 3:16 to go. Marshfield ran out the clock with six running plays.
“T.J. made some really nice cuts and had a big night,” Goettl said. “I’m excited for my quarterbacks. They are seeing things, making plays. It was a really exciting night.”
Marshfield plays at D.C. Everest next Friday. The Evergreens, also 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the Wisconsin Valley, are coming off a 35-21 loss to Wisconsin Rapids.
“Our offense played really well tonight,” Stemen said. “Our running game was there and opened up the passing game, and we had key linemen step up. It was a great team effort.”
Tigers 22, Warriors 7
Wausau West 7 0 0 0 – 7
Marshfield 7 6 0 9 – 22
First quarter
W – Chris Seager 19 run (Matt Bautch kick), 6:32.
M – Elliot Ashbeck 1 run (Sully Luepke kick), 2:54.
Second quarter
M – T.J. Vantassel 4 run (kick missed), 4:43.
Fourth quarter
M – Cody Tarnowski 10 run (pass failed), 7:45.
M – Luepke 30 field goal, 5:03.
TEAM STATISTICS
First downs: Wausau West 9, Marshfield 20.
Rushing (att-yards): Wausau West 32-150, Marshfield 40-188.
Passing (comp-att-yards-int): Wausau West 8-20-93-0, Marshfield 12-26-183-0.
Penalties: Wausau West 5-49, Marshfield 4-41.
Fumbles (total-lost): Wausau West 2-2, Marshfield 3-2.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing: West, Nate Kuehl 17-107, Chris Seager 4-27, Austin Kraimer 6-12, Travis Schertz 5-4. Marshfield, T.J. Vantassel 28-152, Cody Tarnowski 3-17, Brad Dolezal 2-9, Josh Shupe 4-6, Elliot Ashbeck 3-4.
Passing: West, Schertz 8-20-93-0. Marshfield, Chris Stemen 7-18-144-0, Ashbeck 5-8-39-0.
Receiving: West, Kuehl 2-41, Matiah Fischer 2-29, Jake Lindmeier 2-19, Kraimer 1-4, Seager 1-0. Marshfield, Ian Padron 3-58, Dolezal 3-23, Vantassel 2-54, Jake Lisiecki 2-25, Tyler Rollins 1-12, Payton Marshall 1-11.
Fumble recoveries: West, Aaron Koeller, Brent Hayes. Marshfield, Ross Zillman, Justin Sternweis.
Missed field goal: Marshfield, Luepke 25.
Records: Wausau West 0-4, 0-2 Wisconsin Valley; Marshfield 2-2, 1-1 Wisconsin Valley.