O-C Tops EPPJ In Lightening-Shortened Showdown

Severe weather in the area got in the way of the second half of Friday night's Elgin Public/Pope John and Clearwater-Orchard showdown, but that didn't stop the scoreboard from getting lit up all night.

Lightening shortened the homecoming night battle between the Wolfpack and the Cyclones one play into the second half, by which point the Cyclones already held a commanding lead - which would be the final - 46-0.

The first quarter was a bit of a back and forth affair, with both teams marching down the field almost at will. However, the Wolfpack were unable to capitalize on their opportunities as they turned the ball over on a fumble and a missed field goal kept them scoreless. In that same frame, Clearwater-Orchard got scores thanks to a 13-yard strike from Blake Hoke to Kirby Willats and a 42-yard dash from Creston Bertschinger to go up 14-0 entering the second quarter.

The second quarter is where the Cyclones really buckled down, especially Bertschinger. He notched two more scores - one on a 60-yard run and the other on a kick return after a safety. However, it was a lineman who go the scoring started in the quarter when Andrew Steskal lined up at fullback and punched it in from three yards out. Chris Kester followed that up a few plays later with a pick-six for the score. The safety came when Zach King and Ryan Wilhelm met in the end zone for a sack of Wolfpack quarterback Hunter Reestman near the end of the frame.

While the game certainly favored the Cyclones, one of the highlights of the night was when EPPJ sophomore R.J. Lierman came in to replace the injured Kyle Schumacher and immediately pulled in an interception off of Hoke, sending the crowd into an uproar.

Interception aside, Hoke was strong in the shortened game, finishing with 49 yards through the air and 22 receiving. Bertschinger was impressive, racking up 164 yards on just 12 carries and adding another 72 return yards. 

For the Wolfpack, Conor Ramold finished with four completions for 33 yards. The main target on the night was Schumacher, who finished with three grabs for 12 yards.