KENOSHA — Darlington took to the rode for its Level 3 playoff game against undefeated Kenosha St. Joseph, ending the Lancers’ season with a 20-6 victory.
The Redbirds wasted no time scoring, marching 51 yards to the end zone in 1:26. In two carries, Maddox Goebel went 39 yards for two first downs, and Tye Crist finished the drive with a 10-yard TD run.
“When you come out and score like that its big,” head coach Travis Winkers said. “When you do that to a team, all of a sudden they are thinking in the back of their mind, ‘Holy smokes, these guys are physical.’”
In their opening drive, the Lancers gradually moved down field with three- to four-yard runs. Their top rushers — Eric Kenesie and Jayden Gordon — combined for three first downs. Near midfield, Kenesie pitched it to Gordon, but the wet ball slipped right through Gordon’s fingers. Breylin Goebel recovered the ball on Kenosha’s 37-yard line.
“It’s pretty big. It changed the momentum as the game went on,” junior linebacker Reagan Jackson said. “A lot of us built off that on the offensive side of the ball.”
In Darlington’s next possession, Breylin Goebel converted two rushing first downs, forcing Kenosha to use its first timeout. As the offense ran to the sideline, shouts of “They can’t hang with us” and “Let’s go” could be heard.
The Lancers’ timeout did little to slow the Redbirds, as Ross Crist broke away for a 20-yard TD. On the two-point conversion, the entire offensive line pushed Breylin Goebel across the line to go up 14-0.
Nearing the end of the first quarter, Kenosha faced a fourth-and-two situation and elected to go for it. Darlington’s defense was a brick wall, stopping the run and forcing a turnover on downs. The Redbirds were unable to capitalize though, going three and out.
Despite just being on the field, the Darlington defense remained strong. Mason Davis put pressure on quarterback Kenesie, whose lofted ball was nearly intercepted by Breylin Goebel. After a first-down pass to Gordon, Kenesie was brought down for a nine-yard loss by Jackson. The sack forced Kenosha to punt.
“I have to thank my other guys around me,” Jackson said of his defensive performance. “They’re a big reason why I get home on a lot of the blitzes; they make their gaps for me on the line.”
The Lancers’ punter shanked the ball, giving the Redbirds excellent field position at their own 44-yard line.
After runs by Ross Crist and Maddox Goebel, Darlington faced fourth and one with the half winding down. Winkers called a timeout to stop the clock and call his next play — a QB keeper for Cadyn Burbach that resulted in a first down. Burbach then threw a 21-yard pass to Will Murray to get in the red zone. With 25 seconds left, Breylin Goebel scored for a 20-0 lead.
Kenosha got only one snap off before the clock ran out in the first half.
The third quarter saw no scores, as both the Lancers and Redbirds dealt with a wet ball. Passes for both teams — Kenesie to Gordon and Burbach to Maddox Goebel — slipped through the hands of their intended targets. Defensively, Darlington forced two more turnovers on downs.
After a first-down pass to Luke Schuler, Kenosha failed to convert in the air. Talan Crist put pressure on Kenesie and Brady Long and Tye Crist’s pass coverage got the best of Kenosha’s receivers. On fourth-and-ten, Kenesie and Gordon connected for 25 yards and first down.
An illegal procedure and illegal man down field pushed the Lancers back, but Kenesie was still able to find the end zone for Kenosha’s first and only score of the game.
With the end of the game near, Darlington continued its run game to take time off the clock. Tye Crist and Breylin Goebel ran for first downs, forcing Kenosha to use its remaining timeouts. With just over a minute left, Breylin Goebel’s first down solidified the win, as Burbach took a knee to end the game.
Headed into Level 3, Kenosha averaged 233 rushing ypg, but Darlington limited the Lancers to just 74 yards and one TD. Jackson had one sack and Carter Murray and Breylin Goebel forced one fumble each.
“Our defense has been the strength of our team,” Winkers said. “I said that way back in the preseason. I knew we were going to be good. Coach McGranahan does a great job. I’m proud of the kids.”
Meanwhile, the Redbirds ran for 226 yards. Breylin Goebel led the team with 65 yards, followed by Ross Crist with 52, Tye Crist with 47 and Maddox Goebel with 46. Burbach was one-for-four with 21 passing yards and 16 rushing yards.
UP NEXT: MONDOVI (11-1)
Darlington will play Mondovi at 7 p.m. on Friday, 11 at Wisconsin Dells. The Buffaloes defeated Marshall 35-0 in Level 3.
Darlington and Mondovi have met two times in the last three years. Last year, Darlington defeated Mondovi at home 32-6 in the Level 2 playoffs. In 2019 — when the current senior class were freshmen — Mondovi shut out Darlington 42-0 in Level 2.
“We’ve played them twice in the last three years and whatever it is, they are physical,” Winkers said. “We know that. They are, in my opinion, the most physical team we’ve played in the last three years, and we’ve played Saint Mary’s Springs five times. It’s going to be a blood bath.”
Buffaloes quarterback Jarod Falkner is 75-for-132 with 1,200 yards and nine TDs on the season. His most frequent target, Cade Fremstad, has 549 yards on 27 catches with 5 TDs. On the ground, Mondovi has two rushers over 1,000 yards: Dawson Rud (1,578) and Falkner (1,010).
Level 4 is the first playoff game with a neutral site, but Winkers said it doesn’t matter. His team cherishes the opportunity to still be fighting for the state title.
“Everyone knows that Level 4 is neutral. It’s just whether they have a little longer trip or they have a little longer trip,” Winkers said. “It doesn’t matter. We will go all the way to Superior if that means we are still playing right now.”
