Fisher captain Tom Gorman predicted that Sunday's game against Siegfried would be won by "one big play or two, not by the offense moving up and down the field."
He was right.
The Fisher Green Wave (1-1) garnered their first victory of the year over the Siegfried Ramblers (2-1) with a score of 10-7 Sunday afternoon. Gorman expected a higher scoring game, but attributed the close game to evenly matched defenses.
"Both teams played a heck of a game," Gorman said.
Fisher opened the game with possession of the ball, but soon relinquished it to Siegfried after a tackle by Damian Althoff stopped the Green Wave just short of the first down. Tim Breitbach and Jon Kaup led the Ramblers' offensive drive with 10-yard gains each.
Fisher quarterback Casey Cullen led the offensive attack in the second quarter with a 15-yard pass to running back Kameron Chappell. The game remained scoreless until Cullen ran for a touchdown with less than two minutes remaining in the half. Kicker Dan Mannas added the extra point.
Siegfried quickly responded. Kaup caught a 15-yard pass from quarterback Bill Bingle, scoring a touchdown with just nine seconds left in the half. Kicker John Nowak followed the touchdown with a successful extra point attempt.
Fisher countered with an early field goal in the fourth quarter by Mannas, putting the Green Wave in the lead - a lead they never relinquished. The Ramblers inched increasingly closer to the end zone towards the end of the quarter, but failed to score.
Siegfried coach John Torgenson called the loss a learning experience.
"There are no excuses," Torgenson said. "They just outplayed us. We have to face adversity and move on."
Despite the loss, Torgenson is still confident that the Ramblers will make the playoffs.
"We're making the playoffs. It's not a question. It's something we have to do. We just have to tighten things up this week," he said.
Siegfried has a bye this week and is set to play Carroll just before fall break. Fisher will face Zahm next Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Riehle fields.
Zahm 19, Sorin 7
Eric Tarnowski scored two touchdowns Sunday, including a 40-yard run, in Zahm's 19-7 win over Sorin.
Zahm's defense was the first to hit the gridiron, where they faced a potentially deadly set of receivers and a very quick quarterback.
Zahm struggled and failed to stop Sorin on its opening drive, as the Otters moved the ball 80 yards for the score to start the game.
For Zahm's defense, it was a lesson in humility, but a lesson learned, as they regrouped after the first points of the game.
Although opening strong, the Otters couldn't quite make the plays to keep themselves in the game.
Tarnowski lead the Zahmbies in scoring, collecting two of the three Zahm touchdowns. Wide receiver Chad Knapke scored the other on a 35-yard reception.
"It was good to come out [and] play hard," said Tarnowski, who complemented his team on successfully completing two full-field drives. "As a team, we put it together."
Sorin Sophomore Mike Draz reflected on his team's play after the game.
"[We] came out strong the first couple of series," he said. "We had a few bad plays, and it just went down hill from there."
Knott 6, St. Ed's 6
Sunday afternoon's game left both Knott and St. Ed's unsatisfied, as an intensely played contest resulted in a 6-6 tie.
"It was a hard fought game," St. Ed's junior Mike Ryan said. "A lot of people played real hard. We worked all week for this."
Knott began the game on a sour note, as the opening play's bad snap led to a fumble. The Juggs would recover, with quarterback Ben Gilfillan finding Mike Pykosz on fourth down. A holding penalty on the next series, however, placed the Juggs at fourth-and-20, forcing a punt.
The second quarter brought Knott a break, as a St. Ed's receiver fumbled the ball on a punt and the Juggs recovered on the St. Ed's 30-yard line. Despite a quarterback sack by Mike Giampa, Gilfillan managed a long pass to Pykosz, who ran it in for the Juggs' only touchdown.
The extra point attempt was blocked, and St. Ed's again failed to convert as the half expired.
The second half, however, would see things turning around. St. Ed's started with the ball on its own 35-yard line. The Kings strung together several strong runs, with the help of quarterback Philip Wagner.
The running game that defined the St. Ed's offense through most of the game proved successful, as Giampa broke a tackle to make it second and five, and the quarter ended with the ball on Knott's 11-yard line.
On first-and-10, Wagner found Giampa in the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown pass. St. Ed's decided to go for the two-point conversion. A tackle by cornerback Brian Schmutzler and linebacker Joe McCarthy on the goal line, however, denied the attempt.
St. Ed's would intercept a pass on Knott's next possession, but a fourth-down Wagner pass fell incomplete, turning the ball back over to Knott on its own 13-yard line.
McCarthy ran for a first down, and Pykosz caught a twenty-yard pass from Gilfillan to enter St. Ed's territory.
However, an offensive pass interference penalty was called on the next play to put the Juggs out of scoring range.
A sack by Giampa ended the scoring threat, and ultimately, the game.
"Both teams played their hearts out and left everything on the field," Giampa said.
