DE PERE — The West De Pere Phantoms (10-0) opened the WIAA playoffs with a powerful offensive showing, defeating the Hartford Orioles (4-6) 70-33 on Friday night to remain unbeaten on the season.
“Well, this was pretty good. I mean, any time you put up 70 points, 63 offensively, or I should say even 56 offensively, but we had a special teams touchdown and then one on defense. Any time you put up that kind of points, it’s always great,” said Phantoms Head Coach Chris Greisen.
The Phantoms struck fast when quarterback Patrick Greisen (#3) found junior receiver Braylon Stegall (#11) on a 30 yard touchdown pass with 5:15 left in the first quarter. Hartford responded with a long touchdown, but West De Pere shut down the fake extra point attempt to hold the lead 7-6.
Despite the chilly October conditions, the Phantoms offense stayed hot. Senior receiver Judeah Kniskern (#8) helped move West De Pere downfield before Stegall scored again to open the second quarter. Kniskern then hauled in a 10 yard touchdown midway through the quarter, and closed the half with a second touchdown grab to send the Phantoms into halftime in full control.
“They are a good team. They have some athletes, they have some playmakers now,” Coach Greisen said about Hartford. “They are a tough team. They are physical. They got nasty a couple times, and they're hard to tackle.”
The momentum continued after halftime. Defensive end Jaxon Jashinsky (#80) caught a fake punt and raced 45 yards for a touchdown, electrifying the crowd. Running back Ryan Lutz (#20) found the end zone twice in the third quarter, while linebacker Mason Werner (#33) returned a fumble for another touchdown as West De Pere continued running up the score.
“It means everything. You win, you go on, you lose, you’re done. So I don’t wanna lose. I’m not trying to hang it up yet,” said Senior Wide Receiver Judeah Kniskern. “Every practice, you got to work hard. Every game, strive for the best.”
“Well, it is a team that we know quite well,” Greisen said on facing Pulaski next. “So we get another opportunity. I am sure they will have some more wrinkles for us, and we’ll be ready for the challenge.”
West De Pere will host Pulaski next Friday in the second round of the WIAA playoffs.
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