DARLINGTON — With SWAL title hopes rising and a perfect league record on the line, Darlington punched in for another convincing victory on Friday night, with a 35-13 triumph over the visiting Cubans in conference action.
The No. 3 Redbirds (9-0, 6-0) resumed their ritual domination in their final regular season home game with an aggressive ground attack and a defense that dictated the tone for much of the contest. Calum Crist opened scoring partway through the first, following his blockers for a bruising 1-yard touchdown run. Yasser Andino-Andino’s deadly accurate foot put the PAT through the middle of the uprights.
Darlington continued to build momentum on the ensuing drives, relying on its offensive line to dominate the trenches. Early in the second quarter, Dante Glendenning made his mark with a punishing 1-yard touchdown plunge, doubling the Redbirds’ advantage. Cuba City’s (2-6, 2-4) defense was kept guessing as quarterback Zeke Zuberbuhler delivered a 12-yard rushing score.
As the second period crossed the one-minute mark to the break, Zuberbuhler engineered another scoring drive, capping it with a threaded 10-yard touchdown pass to Broker Buschor in the back corner of the endzone. Yasser Andino-Andino converted each extra point, and Darlington entered halftime leading 28-0, its defense having stifled the Cubans’ attempts to sustain drives or flip field position effectively.
The third quarter saw the Redbirds’ defense deliver its pivotal play of the game. Parker Mosley, an all-conference defensive back, jumped an out route and intercepted Cuba City quarterback Hudson Kieler, racing 39 yards for a pick-six. Following a fifth PAT from Darlington’s accurate kicker, a running clock ensued through the end of the third, and would not be stopped to the final whistle.
Even as the Cubans trailed, they showed flashes of resilience in the fourth quarter. Running back Ethan Griffin fought through tacklers for a 13-yard touchdown, and fullback Wyatt Yoose capped another promising drive with a 1-yard plunge. Landon Busch converted on his only PAT, while a 2-point attempt on a fake field goal yielded nothing.
On the stat sheet, the Redbirds’ offense was effective despite initial slowness. Zuberbuhler led all rushers, piling up 88 yards on 14 carries and a 12-yard touchdown, complemented by completing 5-of-10 passes for 46 yards and a score. Crist powered the effort with 76 yards on seven attempts and a touchdown, while Glendenning added 22 rushing yards and a score on five carries. Ryder Fitzsimmons joined the parade, tallying 72 yards on just four carries and helping the Redbirds finish the night with 289 rushing yards and four scores on the ground. Buschor starred in the passing game as well, hauling in a touchdown, while Glendenning narrowly earned the most targets, taking two for 28 yards.
“Defensively, Cuba City gave us a different defense we were not expecting, and it caused some issues with our pass game protection,” Darlington head coach Travis Winkers said. “In the big picture, it was good for us though as we have stuff on film we can show and teach to fix things. Belleville runs a similar defense that Cuba City ran for the first time all season.”
The Redbirds’ defense limited the Cubans to just 88 passing yards, one interception and almost no rushing yardage through three quarters. Mosley’s pick-six was the centerpiece of a unit that kept pressure high and created turnover opportunities.
For Cuba City, Griffin’s late touchdown and 74 rushing yards on 10 carries were bright spots. Quarterback Kieler finished 11-for-21 for 88 passing yards but Darlington’s sticky defensive corps allowed little room for efficiency. Briggs Runde led the Cubans’ receivers with seven catches for 49 yards.
No matter what happens in the Redbirds’ regular season finale at Belleville (5-4, 5-1) on Oct. 17, they have a conference title in hand. What will matter is if they share it with the Wildcats and possibly Fennimore (7-2, 5-1), or not.
“Going into next week, we are looking to clean up a lot of schematic errors on the offensive line,” Winkers said. “This was one of our uglier games we have had. Again, some of that is credit to Cuba City and some was just uncharacteristic errors on our end. Our defense played great again this week, as the starters pitched another shutout.”
“To be 8-0 with a chance to win an outright conference title in Week 9, is the position we wanted to be in,” Winkers added. “The kids are excited as every game from here, the stakes are of the highest importance.”
