MONROE - Every defense waits for a signature moment in a season. The Monroe High School football team's defense may have delivered its signature moment Friday night.
Despite being tested like never before, Monroe's defense stuffed Fort Atkinson senior running back Preston Strasburg at the 1-yard line to deny a two-point conversion run that gave the Cheesemakers a thrilling 41-40 double-overtime win over the Blackhawks in a WIAA Division 3 second-round playoff game.
Moments after Strasburg bowled in for a 2-yard TD run in the second overtime, Fort Atkinson coach Steve Mahoney rolled the dice to go for a two-point conversion. It took two plays for the Cheesemakers to survive. Monroe was called for pass interference on the first play and the ball was moved to the 1-yard line before the goalline stand.
"I had all the confidence in the world in the defense," said Monroe senior Cole Murray, who rushed for 169 yards on 16 carries and scored four touchdowns. "I'm speechless right now. It's amazing. It's beyond me. Scoring the four touchdowns is great. Winning the game is the most important thing. We are two wins away from going to state."
Monroe (11-0) advances and will host Pewaukee (10-1) in a state quarterfinal game next week.
Monroe senior fullback Isaac Allen rushed for 182 yards on 27 carries and scored two touchdowns.
Monroe coach Toby Golembiewski wasn't surprised that the Blackhawks went for the two-point conversion at the end of the second overtime. It's a heartbreaking ending for the Blackhawks (6-5), who lost an overtime game during the regular season also.
"Sometimes as coaches we take calculated risks," Golembiewski said. "I don't know what he knew or saw. I can't speak for him. It was a calculated risk. I know if we would have went to another overtime we would have had to have gone for two. I wouldn't have a problem going for it with Strasburg. He's one of the best backs in the state."
Strasburg entered the game with 1,904 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns, and he rushed for 146 yards on 36 carries and scored three touchdowns Friday.
"It's great for the defense to have a goalline stand," Golembiewski said. "It's something they can hang their hat on."
It was an uncharacteristic game for a Cheesemakers' defense that came into the game giving up just 10.7 points per game. The Blackhawks racked up 462 total yards and were 11 of 17 on third-down conversions. Fort Atkinson senior quarterback Matt Romens and senior wide receiver Jared Edwards nearly pulled off an upset of the top-seeded Cheesemakers. Romens completed 17 of 24 passes for 256 yards with three touchdowns. Edwards had 12 receptions for 205 yards and three touchdowns.
"When you have a back like Strasburg you have to make a concentrated effort to contain him," Golembiewski said. "You have to decide what is the lesser of two evils."
The game had the makings of a shutout early on. The Cheesemakers capped a 14-play, 85-yard drive with Murray's 8-yard TD run to take a lead midway through the first quarter.
The Blackhawks answered with a 12-play, 80-yard drive, culminating in Romens' 5-yard TD pass to Edwards to tie the game at 7 with 8:01 left in the second quarter. Romens then hooked up with Edwards on a 42-yard TD pass late in the second quarter to give the Blackhawks a short-lived 13-7 lead. The Cheesemakers responded with Murray bolting for an 84-yard TD run to tie the game at 13 at the half.
Fort Atkinson capitalized on a fumble recovery to start the third quarter. Romens hit Edwards on a 32-yard TD pass to give the Blackhawks a 20-13 lead. It took one play for the Cheesemakers to strike back, as Allen rumbled for a 64-yard TD run to tie the game at 20.
It looked like the Cheesemakers were going to roll late in the game after Murray scored on a 5-yard run to cap a 15-play, 61-yard drive that gave the Cheesemakers a 27-20 lead.
The Cheesemakers had several chances to put the game away in the fourth quarter. With the game tied and facing fourth-and-4 from the Blackhawks' 14-yard line, Fort Atkinson bottled up Murray to force a turnover on downs. Strasburg had a 3-yard TD run with 3:19 left in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 27.
Monroe junior Dempzy Foley missed a 30-yard field goal with 38 seconds to go in the fourth quarter.
"It's a kick he can make," Golembiewski said. "It was a little windy. It was probably a little more windy up in the air than when we called for it. If we didn't think he could make it we wouldn't have called his number, and we would have went for it on fourth down."
Monroe junior Brayden Zettle almost came up with an interception with 11 seconds left in regulation.
Strasburg had a 2-yard TD run in the first overtime to give the Blackhawks a 34-27 lead. The Cheesemakers answered with Murray racing in for a 14-yard TD run to tie the game at 34 to force a second overtime.
The Cheesemakers got the ball to start the second overtime and it didn't take long before Allen scored on a 12-yard run to give the Cheesemakers a 41-34 lead. That set the stages for a frantic finish.
"We were not getting it done all the time on offense and defense," Golembiewski said. "We were able to get it done in certain situations when it was crucial. It's a great lesson you have to learn. You may get down, but you can't hang your head. You have to ride that emotional roller coaster. We always tell the kids in practice no matter what happens you have to keep answering the bell."
For the Cheesemakers the bell will ring at least one more time.
Despite being tested like never before, Monroe's defense stuffed Fort Atkinson senior running back Preston Strasburg at the 1-yard line to deny a two-point conversion run that gave the Cheesemakers a thrilling 41-40 double-overtime win over the Blackhawks in a WIAA Division 3 second-round playoff game.
Moments after Strasburg bowled in for a 2-yard TD run in the second overtime, Fort Atkinson coach Steve Mahoney rolled the dice to go for a two-point conversion. It took two plays for the Cheesemakers to survive. Monroe was called for pass interference on the first play and the ball was moved to the 1-yard line before the goalline stand.
"I had all the confidence in the world in the defense," said Monroe senior Cole Murray, who rushed for 169 yards on 16 carries and scored four touchdowns. "I'm speechless right now. It's amazing. It's beyond me. Scoring the four touchdowns is great. Winning the game is the most important thing. We are two wins away from going to state."
Monroe (11-0) advances and will host Pewaukee (10-1) in a state quarterfinal game next week.
Monroe senior fullback Isaac Allen rushed for 182 yards on 27 carries and scored two touchdowns.
Monroe coach Toby Golembiewski wasn't surprised that the Blackhawks went for the two-point conversion at the end of the second overtime. It's a heartbreaking ending for the Blackhawks (6-5), who lost an overtime game during the regular season also.
"Sometimes as coaches we take calculated risks," Golembiewski said. "I don't know what he knew or saw. I can't speak for him. It was a calculated risk. I know if we would have went to another overtime we would have had to have gone for two. I wouldn't have a problem going for it with Strasburg. He's one of the best backs in the state."
Strasburg entered the game with 1,904 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns, and he rushed for 146 yards on 36 carries and scored three touchdowns Friday.
"It's great for the defense to have a goalline stand," Golembiewski said. "It's something they can hang their hat on."
It was an uncharacteristic game for a Cheesemakers' defense that came into the game giving up just 10.7 points per game. The Blackhawks racked up 462 total yards and were 11 of 17 on third-down conversions. Fort Atkinson senior quarterback Matt Romens and senior wide receiver Jared Edwards nearly pulled off an upset of the top-seeded Cheesemakers. Romens completed 17 of 24 passes for 256 yards with three touchdowns. Edwards had 12 receptions for 205 yards and three touchdowns.
"When you have a back like Strasburg you have to make a concentrated effort to contain him," Golembiewski said. "You have to decide what is the lesser of two evils."
The game had the makings of a shutout early on. The Cheesemakers capped a 14-play, 85-yard drive with Murray's 8-yard TD run to take a lead midway through the first quarter.
The Blackhawks answered with a 12-play, 80-yard drive, culminating in Romens' 5-yard TD pass to Edwards to tie the game at 7 with 8:01 left in the second quarter. Romens then hooked up with Edwards on a 42-yard TD pass late in the second quarter to give the Blackhawks a short-lived 13-7 lead. The Cheesemakers responded with Murray bolting for an 84-yard TD run to tie the game at 13 at the half.
Fort Atkinson capitalized on a fumble recovery to start the third quarter. Romens hit Edwards on a 32-yard TD pass to give the Blackhawks a 20-13 lead. It took one play for the Cheesemakers to strike back, as Allen rumbled for a 64-yard TD run to tie the game at 20.
It looked like the Cheesemakers were going to roll late in the game after Murray scored on a 5-yard run to cap a 15-play, 61-yard drive that gave the Cheesemakers a 27-20 lead.
The Cheesemakers had several chances to put the game away in the fourth quarter. With the game tied and facing fourth-and-4 from the Blackhawks' 14-yard line, Fort Atkinson bottled up Murray to force a turnover on downs. Strasburg had a 3-yard TD run with 3:19 left in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 27.
Monroe junior Dempzy Foley missed a 30-yard field goal with 38 seconds to go in the fourth quarter.
"It's a kick he can make," Golembiewski said. "It was a little windy. It was probably a little more windy up in the air than when we called for it. If we didn't think he could make it we wouldn't have called his number, and we would have went for it on fourth down."
Monroe junior Brayden Zettle almost came up with an interception with 11 seconds left in regulation.
Strasburg had a 2-yard TD run in the first overtime to give the Blackhawks a 34-27 lead. The Cheesemakers answered with Murray racing in for a 14-yard TD run to tie the game at 34 to force a second overtime.
The Cheesemakers got the ball to start the second overtime and it didn't take long before Allen scored on a 12-yard run to give the Cheesemakers a 41-34 lead. That set the stages for a frantic finish.
"We were not getting it done all the time on offense and defense," Golembiewski said. "We were able to get it done in certain situations when it was crucial. It's a great lesson you have to learn. You may get down, but you can't hang your head. You have to ride that emotional roller coaster. We always tell the kids in practice no matter what happens you have to keep answering the bell."
For the Cheesemakers the bell will ring at least one more time.
