In a hard fought football game, the Waupaca Comets got the better of the Clintonville Truckers, defeating them 17-0. This is Clintonville’s second loss of the season with the exact same score.
Waupaca got on the board with one second left in the first half by kicking a 42-yard field goal. Both teams used outstanding defense to keep each other out of the end zone. Waupaca forced the Truckers to punt the ball with under a minute remaining in the half. The Comets moved the ball down within field goal range and Waupaca’s Bjorn Asher connected on the kick.
Clintonville was still in the game until two costly turnovers gave Waupaca opportunities to score. After Clintonville’s defense held the Comets in the third quarter forcing them to punt, the Truckers fumbled the punt giving the ball back to Waupaca. Again the Clintonville defense stood strong, but gave up a fourth and long which allowed Waupaca to move the ball to the one yard line. Waupaca quarterback Sam Menzies was able to run it in for the score. Bjorn Asher added the extra point kick to make it 10-0.
With time running out in the game, Clintonville went to the air only to have the Comet’s pick it off. Again the Truckers held them and on fourth and long Menzies threw up a pass that was brought down in the end zone by Asher for the score. Asher kicked the extra point to make it 17-0.
Clintonville was led in rushing by A.J. Russell who had 13 runs for 61 yards. Jake Reiter had 17 carries for 41 yards. On the defensive side, the Truckers were led by Brandon Dilge with five solo tackles and ten assisted tackles. Jared Henschel had two solo and 15 assisted tackles; Trenten Gauthier had three solo and ten assisted tackles; Kolin Kubitz had three solo and four assisted tackles; and Dakota Haynes had one solo and eight assisted tackles.
“We played a good team tough. Our defense came to play. We struggled on the offensive side of the ball. We just did not have any consistency on the offensive side. We had several good runs, but could not sustain a drive,” commented Coach Bob Petermann. Clintonville’s next game is Friday, Sept. 16, at home against Berlin at 7 p.m.