Eagles Defeat Titans In Battle Of Nationally Ranked Teams
Joey Stutzman rushed 32 times for 156 yards and three touchdowns to lead UW-La Crosse to a 30-21 win over UW-Oshkosh in a battle of nationally ranked Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football teams Saturday (Oct. 9) in La Crosse.
UW-La Crosse (4-1, 2-0 WIAC), ranked 20th in the NCAA Division III by D3football.com, took its first lead of the game at 23-21 following a 20-yard field goal by Ryan Beirne with 5:47 left in the fourth quarter. UW-Oshkosh was then held for no gain on a fourth-and-1 play at its own 34-yard line, and Stutzman clinched the Eagles victory with his third rushing touchdown of the day – a 1-yard plunge – to cap a four-play drive with 1:37 remaining.
Ninth-ranked UW-Oshkosh (3-1, 1-1 WIAC) took leads of 7-0 on a Kobe Berghammer 1-yard touchdown run on the game's opening possession, 14-7 following a 3-yard Mac Winkler run into the end zone with 6:10 left in the second quarter and 21-7 on a 36-yard touchdown pass from Berghammer to Stephan Flores at the 3:21 mark of the second period. The Titans' first two touchdowns capped drives of 14 and 16 plays.
A Stutzman 3-yard touchdown run pulled UW-La Crosse even at 7 with 4:39 to go in the first quarter before a 12-yard Stutzman scoring run cut the Eagles deficit to 21-14 at the 7:32 mark of the third period.
UW-La Crosse's Brad Tobin, who finished with 50 yards on the ground, ran for a 4-yard touchdown to make the score 21-20, but Beirne's ensuing extra point was blocked by Brody Milz, allowing UW-Oshkosh to maintain the lead with 41 seconds left in the third quarter.
UW-Oshkosh, which suffered its second straight setback to the Eagles after rattling off eight consecutive victories in the series, conducted just three offensive plays in UW-La Crosse territory during the second half.
UW-La Cross held advantages of 406-301 in scrimmage yards, including 218-97 rushing, and 23-17 in first downs.
Berghammer went 19 of 32 passing for 204 yards with one touchdown and zero interceptions for the Titans. He now has six touchdown tosses and a team-leading four rushing scores on the year.
Peter MacCudden led the UW-Oshkosh rushing attack with 11 carries for 52 yards while Winkler added 15 yards on the ground on five rushes. Winkler's second-quarter rushing score was the first of his career.
Trae Tetzlaff paced the Titans with a season best seven catches for 84 yards. Flores and Tony Steger added three receptions apiece for a combined 87 yards. Flores's touchdown grab was his first this season.
Carson Raddatz and Tory Jandrin spearheaded the Titans defense with 12 and 10 tackles, respectively, while Brandon Hughes made seven stops, and Tyler Staerkel and Eli Tranel both had six. Nick Noethe accounted for UW-Oshkosh lone sack. Both of Brandon Kolgen's two tackles went for losses along the Titans defensive line.
UW-La Crosse quarterback Jakob Parks, who entered the day with a WIAC-leading 13 touchdown passes, completed 16 of 23 attempts for 188 yards without a touchdown or interception.
Jake Simuncak, the WIAC's leading receiver this season, hauled in 10 catches for 112 yards.
UW-La Crosse's Ryan Daines and Trevar Helland made team high eight tackles apiece while Rusty Murphy and Jack Kelly accounted for the Eagles' two sacks.
UW-Oshkosh conducts its home opener next Saturday (Oct. 16) against third-ranked UW-Whitewater at J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
Photo by Jim Lund