Undefeated Wildcats, Tigercats will put it on line

A mid-season clash for two teams on a roll has been booked Friday at LaCrosse. The 4-0 LaCrosse/Washtucna/ Kahlotus Tigercats will host the 3-0 Colton Wildcats after both teams rolled up big wins Friday night.

Tigercat Coach Jeff Nelson Tuesday said his team is beginning to get back on track after dealing with the tragic loss of life in the homecoming game at Washtucna last Friday. (see page one)

Nelson sees the Colton-LWK game as a clash between teams with two different styles of play.

“Colton is just so explosive. They can score on one or two plays,” Nelson noted.

The number-one task for the LWK defense will be to contain Colton senior back Sam Robertson.

“You just can’t let him get loose,” Nelson noted.

The Tigercat coach also notes Pat Lutskas is a factor in the line and Wildcat Veteran Chase Druffel is a factor on offense and defense.

Colton Coach Clark Vining expects a wide open game.

“They’re using the same system which has made them so successful in the past,” Vining commented.

He noted the Tigercats two speed backs, Garrett Blauert and Garrett Whitney can be expected to test the Wildcat defense on runs. They also can be key receivers on a Tigercat passing game which seems to advance with each week of the season.

The other county eight-man game will feature another matchup between St. John/Endicott and the Garfield/Palouse team which has been on the hunt for eight-man dates after dropping down from the SE-11 ranks with a depleted roster.

The Vikings are stepping in for Valley Christian which will have a reception after the Friday funeral for Andrew Swank who died Sunday of injuries sustained in the game at Washtucna.

LWK TIGERCATS booked a 38-0 lead over Valley Christian with 24 seconds left in the first quarter on the way to a 64-14 homecoming win at Washtucna. The visiting Panthers scored at the end of the first quarter after the game was shut down for what turned out to be the tragic loss of Junior Drew Swank.

Teams were unaware of the extent of injuries sustained by Swank who left the field in an ambulance.

Blauert scored four times for LWK. He finished with a 3-140 night for receptions and 7-119 for rushing. Jake Aune booked an 8-10 passing night for 255 yards and hit four TDs, including a 65 yarder to Blauert for the last score of the night.

Justin Aldrich had two snags for 61 yards and two TDs, and Jeff Zimmer had two snags for 40 yards.

Jacob Blankenship booked a 3-59 night rushing with two scores.

COLTON last week came back from an 8-14 deficit after the first quarter to defeat the SJE Eagles 60-14 on the Wildcats’ field. The Eagles were shutout over the last three quarters.

“We just got aggressive,” Coach Vining said.

Chase Druffel led the Wildcats tacklers with 13 stops .

SJE quarterback Dylan Schmick escaped for 60 yards off an option keeper to score the first TD for the Eagles. He came back and scored the Eagles early go-head score on a two-yard plunger.

The second Eagle TD came after the Eagles picked up the ball deep in Colton territory when a Wildcat punt attempt went awry.

Colton QB Josh Straughan, who has rolled up a 58 percent completion rate, Friday threw for 368 yards and four TDs against the Eagles.

“He’s getting to the point where he can hit a lot of different receivers, and that’s a plus for us,” Vining said.

Robertson scored twice in the second quarter to regain the lead for Colton. The first tally for the quarter was off a 70-yard pass play from Straughan to Robertson.

Colton came back out after the half and put out 32 points in the third quarter.

ST. JOHN/ENDICOTT Coach Bob Clements also credited Colton with notching up the defense to get the win. One of the keys was the Colton line which put a lot of pressure on the Eagles’ offense.

“They just got aggressive with that three-man line,” Clements commented.

Clements Tuesday said the Eagles appreciated Garfield/Palouse booking a return to the St. John field. The cancellation by Valley Christian left the Eagles without a foe for their homecoming game.

The Vikings two weeks ago were downed by St. John/Endicott 28-12. They have booked a pickup schedule of eight-man games and still had the Oct. 2 date open.