This story is sponsored by Total Electric
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
AUBURNDALE – Edgar’s defensive front was too tough for Auburndale to crack, and the Apaches’ inability to take advantage of some early breaks led to a shutout loss.
Edgar outgained Auburndale 371-13, holding the Apaches to minus 29 yards rushing, and pulled away for a 27-0 victory in the Marawood Conference football opener for both teams on Friday night at Auburndale High School.
Both teams entered Week 3 of the season undefeated and state-ranked. Auburndale was No. 8 in Division 6 and Edgar No. 2 in Division 7 of the Wissports.net State Coaches Poll.
However, Auburndale never could get its offense going, managing just three first downs, and only one after the first quarter. Running back Kyle Peterson had just 10 yards on 12 carries, and quarterback Cooper Weinfurter was harassed every time he dropped back and had minus-32 yards as he was sacked numerous times.
“We knew they were going to be focused and physical, but they seemed to be at a different level, even for them,” Auburndale coach Jay Anderson said. “It’s very different to be able to prepare for that. We can practice against their plays, and have tendencies on them, but you can’t simulate their intensity.”
An interception of Auburndale’s first possession set up Edgar the Apaches’ 5. Following a holding penalty that negated a touchdown, Kyle Brewster ran in from the 16 to give the Wildcats a quick 7-0 lead.
Edgar fumbled into the end zone on its next possession and Auburndale’s Weinfurter recovered.
But, like the first possession, the Apaches couldn’t do anything with it.
Another Edgar fumble, recovered by Hunter Godard, set Auburndale up with its best field position at the Edgar 41. A pass interference penalty allowed the Apaches to reach the 25, but a high snap on second down pushed Auburndale back to the 40 and it was forced to punt for the third-straight time.
Edgar finally hit pay dirt again late in the half when Austin Dahlke scored on a 28-yard run with 1:26 remaining to make it 14-0 going into halftime.
Kaleb Hafermann, who finished with 137 yards rushing, added touchdown runs of 1 and 36 yards to finish the scoring.
Auburndale plays another Marawood game next Friday, Sept. 13, at Tomahawk (0-3 overall, 0-1 Marawood). Edgar will host Hurley for a nonconference game.
Wildcats 27, Apaches 0
Edgar 7 7 13 0 – 27
Auburndale 0 0 0 0 – 0
First Quarter
E – Kyle Brewster 16 run (Austin Miller kick), 10:37.
Second Quarter
E – Austin Dahlke 28 run (Miller kick), 1:26.
Third Quarter
E – Kaleb Hafermann 1 run (kick missed), 5:57.
E – Hafermann 36 run (Miller kick), 5:01.
Team Statistics
First downs: Edgar 17; Auburndale 3
Rushing (att-yards): E 49-336; A 22-minus 29.
Passing (comp-att-yards-int): E 2-6-35-1; A 7-23-42-2.
Total yards: E 371; A 13.
Fumbles (total-lost): E 4-4; A none.
Penalties (no.-yards): E 12-112; A 3-20.
Punting (no.-avg.): E 4-34.8; A 11-30.0.
Individual Statistics
Rushing: E, Kaleb Hafermann 13-137, Austin Dahlke 5-54, Mason Stoudt 12-50, Jordan Bunkelman 8-49, Kyle Brewster 4-22, Ayden Weisenberger 5-22, Josh Kamia 1-1, Konnor Wolf 1-1. S, Kyle Peterson 12-10, Dylan Paun 3-0, Terrance Roberson 1-minus 2, Caleb Weinfurter 6-minus 32.
Passing: E, Wolf 2-6-35-1. A, Weinfurter 7-23-42-2.
Receiving: E, Brewster 1-30, Austin Miller 1-5. A, Paun 5-29, Paul Kollross 1-11, Hunter Wright 1-2.
Interceptions (defense): E, Dahlke, Hafermann. A, Wright.
Punting: E, Stoudt 4-34.8. A, not reported.
Records: Edgar 3-0, 1-0 Marawood Conference; Auburndale 2-1, 0-1 Marawood Conference.