The Rhinelander Daily News - Online news and information for the Rhinelander, Wisconsin region

Vern Hollister
Correspondent

Northern Elite advanced farther than they've gone before, and their head coach Dan St. Arnauld surpassed any of his previous playoff success Saturday when the Predators 22-14 victory over Howards Grove whisked them to Level 3 and a date with St. Mary's Springs in Fond du Lac Saturday, Nov. 8 at 3 p.m.

This time, Niagara/Goodman/Pembine does the traveling because of St. Mary's higher seed. They are the number one seed to the Predators number two in the clash of the two unbeaten teams.

Against Howards Grove, neither the Tigers nor the Predators scored in the opening half. The teams took halftime breaks after Jordan Sexton confronted the Tigers defense and Elliot Thieleke and Andrew Verfuerth tested the toughness of the Northern Elite defense.

The game came down to the second half. Following punts from each team, the Predators got their hands on the ball for the second time. After Sexton picked up a yard, Andrew Janczy broke free for 26 yards to the 50. Adam Stankevich from his wingback slot added another eight yards. Sexton reeled off 16 yards, and Janczy carried to the Tigers 14-yard line. On a second and seven, instead of an up the middle or off tackle run, Sexton circled the right side for the first score of the game with 3:25 left in the third quarter. He was stopped on a two-point conversion run attempt, but a 6-0 lead was a lead.

In less than a minute, however, Howards Grove quarterback Joe Hansen hit Verfuerth on a quick slant. Verfuerth shook free and sped in from 58 yards out. With the extra point, Howards Grove led 7-6, and Predators fans wondered if the extra point would come back to haunt them.

Early in the fourth quarter, a mild brouhaha developed when Dan Parent, practically a magician at quarterback with his fakes and sleight of hand handoffs, faked to Sexton and slipped the ball to Stankevich running free around the left side. The speedy Stankevich was halfway to the goal, not a Tiger within yards when an inadvertent whistle stopped play. Maybe the call re-adrenalized the players, too, but the whistle caught the attention of fans and coaches. As if a fire had been lit, Janczy picked up seven yards and then three yards. Stankevich, without a whistle stopping him on his way, churned up 19 yards to the twenty. Sexton added eight more yards, and he carried twice more until he scored from four yards out. For the successful conversion, Parent pitched to Janczy who handed back to Parent, and it was a 14-7 game.

Fans fired up. Niagara/Goodman/Pembine needed to hold on for six and a half minutes. The noise level increased when the Tigers punted and swelled another decibel when Parent kept around the left side with Stankevich blocking in front on a 60 yard jaunt and a 22-7 edge. Before rejoicing fans had settled, Thieleke looked to be hemmed in a half a dozen times on the kickoff, but he slipped tackles on a return of 83 yards.

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The only thing that saved the Predators then was that Stankevich was faster and caught Thieleke at the two-yard line. The tackle took time off the clock because when Howards Grove did score, 2:47 remained. Even then, some home fans questioned the TD call.

Ben Potter caught the onside kick on the 49, and the Tigers stopped the Predators. At the 40 yard line and a fourth and seven, St. Arnauld called for the first down attempt instead of punting. Later, he said that had their lead been six points, he would have punted; but with an eight point lead, he felt more secure in his defense. He did not want to give Thieleke a chance at another runback.

Alex Taylor intercepted a Hansen pass. Northern Elite milked and milked the clock until they had to give up the ball one more time. In the waning seconds, the Predators defense anticipated a hook and ladder, kept their positions and ended the game. Defensively, the Predators contained Thieleke, a 1,300 yard runner, from scrimmage. Taylor Ziolkowski led the defensive charge with 17 tackles. Taylor, in addition to intercepting the pass late, also recovered a fumble. The two had to share defensive honors with Sexton who had 11 tackles and with Potter who blocked a punt and played pass and run defense. The Predators also prevailed over the best defense they have faced to date. Some fans still talked about the surprise whistle after the game, but luckily it didn't change the outcome.

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