Antalis’ field goal lifts Jeffcats

Published:  Tuesday, September 4, 2007 (8 months, 2 weeks ago)
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By KEVIN WANNEMACHER
For The Delphos Herald

Jefferson junior halfback Aaron Schuerman leaps through a wide hole in the line to garner one of his four touchdowns versus Paulding Friday night at Keysor Field. The visitors needed an 18-yard field goal with 1:08 remaining from junior Matt Antalis to grab a 31-28 NWC opener.PAULDING — Junior Matthew Antalis connected on an 18-yard field goal with 1:08 remaining to lift the Jefferson Wildcats past Paulding 31-28 in Northwest Conference action at Keysor Field Friday night.
The Wildcats, who led 28-7 at halftime, put together a 12-play, 65-yard drive in the fourth quarter to set up the winning kick. Running backs Josh Menke (senior) and Aaron Schuerman (junior) carried the load for Jefferson, combining for 60 yards on 11 carries.
“We made a couple of adjustments there before the last drive and that seemed to open up some holes for us,” stated Wildcat head coach Damon Ulm. “Our offensive line opened up some holes and the backs did a better job of hitting the gaps.”
Jefferson had a first-and-goal at the 9 with Menke picking up two yards before junior Tim Sanders gained five, moving the ball to the Panther 2. However, Menke was stopped at the line of scrimmage on third-and-goal. Following a Jefferson timeout, Antalis then calmly kicked the game winner.
“Matthew does a good job for us,” continued Ulm. “It’s a big asset for us to have a kicker like that.”
It appeared the Wildcats were in control at the midway point as Jefferson led 28-7 at the intermission.
Schuerman ran wild in the opening two quarters, scoring on touchdown runs of 8, 1 (both in the first quarter), 88 and 4 yards (in the second stanza), and finished the first half with 180 yards on 14 carries.
“It was a tale of two games tonight,” Ulm said. “In the first half, we did a really good job of opening holes and taking it to them up front.”
However, the second half belonged to the Panthers. Paulding pulled within 28-13 on an 8-yard run by Corbin Rhonehouse at the 5:32 mark. The maroon and white then trimmed the deficit to 28-21 with 2:07 left in the third quarter.
Quarterback Haden Sholl hooked up with junior split end Andrew Mott for a 34-yard touchdown pass. The Panthers then converted the 2-point conversion pass from Sholl to Chris Rohrs.
“You have to give them a lot of credit,” added Ulm. “They made some great adjustments at halftime. We told our guys to stay fired up and not give them momentum but Paulding played really well in the second half.”
Sholl and Mott again hooked up in the fourth quarter. The duo combined for a 63-yard touchdown pass to tie the contest at 28-28 with 7:18 left.
“Chris has done a tremendous job with this team,” noted Ulm of first-year Panther head coach Chris Etzler. “They are a tough team to play and that is a big credit to the coaching staff.”
“We did a good job of not giving up and coming out and playing hard after a disappointing first half,” stated Etzler. “I am very proud of our kids and the effort they gave. Jefferson is extremely well-coached and it shows in all facets of the game.”
Schuerman finished the night with 204 yards on 20 carries. Sanders added 84 yards on nine tries, while Menke recorded 83 yards on 17 attempts. As a squad, the Wildcats compiled 394 rushing yards.
The Wildcats will host Bluffton in NWC action next Saturday evening. Paulding returns to action on Friday as the Panthers visit Lima Central Catholic.

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