(Article Updated on 8/31)
HARTLAND — Mayville controlled the ground game, held Lake Country Lutheran to just five rushing yards and carried a lead into the final seconds Friday night, but a late Lightning touchdown handed the Cardinals a tough 17-14 road loss.
Mayville's defense set the tone early. After Lake Country Lutheran opened the scoring with a 28-yard Sawyer Uttech field goal at the 11:45 mark of the first quarter, the Cardinals kept the Lightning off the scoreboard for the rest of the first half.
The Cardinals' offense found the end zone just before the break.
With 53 seconds remaining in the second quarter, quarterback Joe Promersberger connected with Kevin Keller for a four-yard touchdown. Owen Mlsna converted the extra point to give Mayville a 7-3 halftime advantage.
The defensive battle continued through a scoreless third quarter, with Mayville taking its four-point lead into the final period.
Mayville head coach Scott Hilber was pleased with what he saw from his defense up front, but said the Cardinals still have work to do on the other side of the ball.
“Defensively we obviously did a pretty good job on the interior, but offensively we still aren't quite where we would like to be this time of year,” Hilber said. “Assignments are still being blown and we aren't finishing on blocks on the perimeter.”
Lake Country Lutheran finally broke through the Mayville defense with 6:17 remaining. Quarterback Will Molnau connected with Ethan Hans for a seven-yard touchdown, giving the Lightning a 10-7 lead after the extra point.
Mayville responded with a scoring drive of its own.
The Cardinals opened up the offense with some early passes before a long option play moved Mayville into the red zone. Schuelke followed with a run to the 1-yard line before finishing the drive with a one-yard touchdown run with 3:02 remaining.
“We opened it up a bit with early passes and we had a long option play that set us up in the red zone, followed by a nice run by Dom to the 1,” Hilber said.
With the Cardinals needing one final defensive stop, Lake Country Lutheran put together the drive that ultimately decided the game.
Molnau moved the Lightning down the field before finding Hans for a two-yard touchdown with just 20 seconds remaining. The extra point gave LCL a 17-14 lead, and Mayville's final possession ended with an interception.
Promersberger completed 6 of 14 passes for 58 yards and the touchdown to Keller. Lake Country Lutheran was forced to rely heavily on its passing game, with Molnau completing 21 of 33 attempts for 204 yards and two touchdowns. Mayville's defense intercepted him twice.
Despite coming within 20 seconds of leaving Hartland with a win, Hilber said the Cardinals should come away with mixed emotions after going toe-to-toe with one of the stronger teams on their schedule.
“Feel good that we competed with one of the best teams in our division, but feel disappointed that we aren't playing to our level yet,” Hilber said. “I'm personally more mad than I am disappointed, primarily because of my own mistakes in preparation and execution.”
Hilber said the focus now turns to becoming more physical along the offensive line while continuing the strong defensive play against the run. He also wants to see the Cardinals become more aggressive in the short passing game.
“Most importantly, we have to clean up the procedural penalties and our poor field position due to special teams,” Hilber said. “The unforced errors from all of us are hard to swallow.”
Mayville (1-1) returns home Friday, Sept. 4, to host Winnebago Lutheran Academy (1-1) at Ray Dunn Field.
Game Summary
Friday, August 28
Lake Country Lutheran 3-0-0-14-17
Mayville 0-7-0-7-14
Final
First Quarter
Lake Country Lutheran: Sawyer Uttech 28-yard field goal 11:45, Lake Country Lutheran 7-0
Second Quarter
Mayville: Joe Promersberger 4-yard pass to Kebin Keller for touchdown (Owen Mlsna XP Good) 00:53, Mayville 7-3
Fourth Quarter
Lake Country Lutheran: Will Molnau pass to Ethan Hans for 7-yard touchdown (Uttech XP Good) 06:17, Lake Country Lutheran 10-7
Mayville: Dominic Schuelke 1-yard rushing touchdown (Mlsna XP Good) 3:02, Mayville 14-10
Lake Country Lutheran: Will Molnau pass to Ethan Hans for 2-yard touchdown (Uttech XP Good) 00:20, Lake Country Lutheran 17-14
Team Stats
Lake Country Lutheran: Passing: 21-34-204-2-2. Rushing: 12-5-0. Total Yards: 209-2
Mayville: Passing: 6-14-58-1-1. Rushing: 48-193-1. Total Yards: 216-2
Mayville
Offensive Individual Stats
PASSING: Joe Promersberger 6-14-58-1-0
RUSHING: Dominic Schuelke 30-117-1. Tanner Schneider 8-40-0. Kevin Keller 3-23-0. Joe Promersberger 6-13-0.
RECEIVING: Covyn Casper 2-39-0. Cooper Raddemann 2-13-0. Kevin Keller 2-6-1.
Defensive Individual Stats
Tackles: Paxton Decker 9. Tanner Schneider 8. Cooper Raddemann 7. Isaiah Gregor 7. Kevin Keller 3. August Giese 3. Weston Teeters 3. Joe Promersberger 3. Owen Mlsna 2. Royce Mueller 2. Dominic Schuelke 2.
TFL: Weston Teeters 1
Int: Tanner Schneider 2
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