Wildcats rebound with win over previously undefeated Pirates

After losing to one undefeated Dairyland Conference team in lopsided fashion two weeks ago, the Blair-Taylor football team came away with a big win against another.

Two touchdowns in the third quarter helped B-T pull away from Cochrane-Fountain City for a 31-17 win in their return trip to Buffalo County a week after a 42-14 loss at Alma/Pepin.

“We went on the road and got a hard fought victory,” coach Andy Nehring said. “Great work by our team.”

The Wildcats sit in second place in the DC with a home game against Eleva-Strum (1-7, 0-6) to close out the regular season this week. If they win, B-T will finish no worse than second place in the DC and could be part of a three-way tie for first should C-FC defeat A/P.

Regardless of what happens Friday, B-T’s season will extend beyond this week as they already clinched a berth in the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association playoffs. The Level One pairings and playoff brackets will be announced on Saturday with games set for next week Friday.

B-T 31 C-FC 17

The Wildcats rode junior Jackson Shramek — who had a career night — while also getting a big play through the air to help break the game open.

B-T led 12-10 at halftime before Ethan Knisley broke loose for a 24-yard touchdown run on their first possession of the second half. The two-point try was stopped. 

The Wildcats got the ball back and Knisley hit Evan Nehring for a 34-yard touchdown. Again, the two-point try was stopped, but B-T led 24-10 at the end of the third.

C-FC made the came interesting when Tanner Schieffer ran for a six-yard touchdown and the point after made the score 24-17 with 6:30 left.

But B-T would not be denied. The Wildcats marched down the field on their next possession before Knisley ran for a 15-yard touchdown. The point after put B-T back ahead by 14 with 3:39 left in the game.

While Knisley did much of the damage in the second half, Shramek was the team’s workhorse, running for 227 yards on 22 carries — an average of 10.3 per attempt.

The junior running back got B-T on the board with a 46-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Knisley ran for an eight-yard touchdown with three minutes left in the half to put B-T ahead 12-0 as neither two-point conversion attempts were successful.

C-FC took momentum right before the half. Austin Arnburg hit Gavin Rich for a 59-yard touchdown with 1:52 left and the ensuing point after made the score 12-7.

The Wildcats gave the ball right back to C-FC and a 23-yard field goal by Grayden Barum made the score 12-10 at halftime.

While he threw two interceptions, Knisley made several big plays. He passed 10-for-14 for 90 yards, including a key touchdown in the third quarter. He ran for 91 yards and three touchdowns, including one that put the game away late in the fourth.

As a team, the Wildcats ran for 346 yards, averaging 9.1 per attempt, while C-FC totaled 85 rushing yards, averaging three yards per carry. 

B-T’s defense also helped contain Arnburg. The quarterback came into the game with 10 touchdowns and one interception in DC play, but B-T picked him off twice and allowed him to complete less than 40 percent of his passes — 11-for-29 — while no other DC team allowed fewer than 50 percent. His passer rating against B-T — 38.6 — was his lowest of the season and far lower than his total rating of 108.5. 

B-T

Rushing (att./yds.) — Shramek 22/227 Knisley 13/91 Gr. Armitage 2/22 Ga. Armitage 1/6

Receiving (rec./yds.) — Nehring 7/78 Nitek 1/11 C. Koxlien 1/1

Passing (comp./att./yds.) — Knisley 10/14/90

Tackles (solo/total) — Nitek 2/2 G. Koxlien 5/5 Lien 0/1 C. Koxlien 0/1 Turner 0/1 J. Shramek 5/6 Knisley 1/2 Ga. Armitage 3/5 Gr. Armitage 4/6 Nehring 2/2 Jahr 2/6 Roseth 2/2 Elvaker 3/7 Rogstad 2/5