MADISON, Wis. – On the verge of overcoming the loss of its starting quarterback, Rice Lake’s hopes of a second consecutive state football title ended with one bad bounce off the artificial turf at Camp Randall stadium.
Undefeated Slinger capitalized on the Warriors’ lone fumble in the fourth quarter and rallied for a 31-30 victory in the Division 2 championship game on Friday afternoon.
Protecting a 30-24 lead, Rice Lake appeared to get a critical break when it recovered a fumble with 6:44 remaining. But the momentum quickly reversed three plays later when Lucas Peters fumbled and Slinger recovered at the Warriors’ 34.
Michael Thiede hit Brayden Schnorenberg with a 24-yard completion for a first down at the 6. Thiede scored on a 2-yard keeper and the conversion kick gave the Owls their first lead at 31-30 with 3:29 left.
In the back-and-forth battle of hard-to-stop offenses, Rice Lake coach Dan Hill thought recovering the Slinger fumble would allow them to preserve the lead.
“That’s what we thought, and then we gave it back to them. On that end of the field, too,” Hill said.
The Warriors picked up one first down on their ensuing possession before turning it over on downs at their own 39 with 2:37 left. Slinger converted a fourth-and-1 on its final drive to secure the victory.
“I’m proud of our kids. They kept fighting,” Hill said. “We had our chance there, if we execute at the end after we knocked the ball out. If we’d have just executed, we could’ve run out the clock.”
Rice Lake (11-3), which moved up after winning the Division 3 title last season, lost senior quarterback Jacob Kunz with an apparent leg injury in the second quarter.
“That’s something you try and build into the program that sometimes it’s next man up,” Hill said. “You never know who it’s going to be, when it’s going to be. Hanging your head and pouting’s not going to help. So next man up, that’s football.”
Rice Lake outgained Slinger 286-135 on the ground, but the Owls had a 181-17 advantage through the air. Connor Durand ran for 123 yards on 14 carries and Peters added 84 yards on 22 attempts with two scores.
Thiede completed 12 of 15 passes for 181 yards and one touchdown. He also ran for a team-high 48 yards with two scores.
Back-up quarterback Grant Pacholke directed a 15-play, 75-yard scoring drive that put the Warriors up 30-24 with 9:25 remaining.
Slinger coach Bill Jacklin was not surprised Rice Lake hung in with its backup quarterback.
“No, they’re a really good team,” Jacklin said. “And, if you’re an actual team, you can pick up the slack. Quality teams are able to do that, and that’s a quality team that’s coached really well.”
Rice Lake kept the drive alive by converting a fourth-and-1 at the Slinger 27. Peters scored on a 3-yard run, but Pacholke was stopped short on the two-point conversion run.
Rice Lake, which did not attempt a pass in the first half, ground out a 24-21 lead at the break. The Warriors converted each of their two-point conversion attempts, while Slinger was stopped short on a two-point attempt on its second score, then settled for conversion kick just before the half.
Rice Lake finally kept the Owls out of the end zone on the opening drive of the third quarter, with Slinger settling for Cole Martin’s 38-yard field goal to tie it 24-24.
The Warriors took the opening kickoff and marched 67 yards in five running plays for an 8-0 lead. Kunz capped the drive with a 12-yard keeper and Lucas ran for the two-point conversion.
Slinger answered with a 65-yard scoring drive, with Thiede scoring from the 1, and a two-point conversion.
Rice Lake then ground out an 11-play, 65-yard scoring drive, capped by Peters’ four-yard run up the middle.
The Owls came right back with a 65-yard march, keyed by Thiede’s 19-yard pass to Brayden Schnorenberg to the 1-yard line. Kyle Hendricks plunged over on the next play, but he was stopped short on the conversion run.
On Rice Lake’s next possession, Kunz was hurt on a 30-yard run to the Slinger 17. Three plays later, Pacholke scored on a 9-yard run, with the conversion making it 24-14 with 2:53 left in the half.
Slinger responded with a 65-yard drive, capped by Thiede’s touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal from the 3 with 16 seconds left.
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