Story by Shelby Jones
Coleville vs Sierra Lutheran
Halloween afternoon was game time for Sierra Lutheran. At the final game of their season, Sierra gave it their all.
Coleville kicked off to Sierra. Sierra led it to a turnover, and the Wolves took the ball. Sterling Funk blocked a pass. The Wolves decided to punt; Zach Ferenz caught it and reached the 25 yard line. Ryan Salerno earned some yards while rushing, then made a pass to Alex Westre at the 36 yard line. From there, Rocky DiMartino made it to Coleville’s 20 yard line. Salerno made a handoff to Cameron Drudge, who scored a touchdown. Logan Schinzing kicked a good PAT. Turning to defense, the Falcons kept the heat on, holding the Wolves till they punted, which Sierra took at the 15 yard line. Coleville matched the Falcons intensity and managed to hold them off as well. On defense once again, Sierra did well, Seth Houghton, Tyrale Luken and Sterling Funk causing a few QB hurries and making many tackles. Yet Coleville found a hole and scored a touchdown, then a conversion. The scores stood 8-7 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Sierra started on offense, Salerno throwing a pass to Jake Cummings, who caught the ball and ran a touchdown. Logan Schinzing made the PAT, adding another point for Sierra. While on offense, the Wolves were held midfield by Sierra, with Zach Ferenz taking most of the tackles. Back on offense, Sierra Lutheran took the ball at the 28 yard line. Salerno ran to 21, then 12, then 8 and finally scored a touchdown. Logan Schinzing kicked another point for Sierra. Back on defense, Cameron Drudge intercepted a pass and racked up a few tackles, along with Seth Houghton, Zach McCullough, and Zach Ferenz. The Falcons received the ball at midfield on offense but was at a loss of downs, so Jake Cummings punted it to Coleville at the 10 yard line. Coleville completed a touchdown, but missed their conversion, making the score 21-14, Sierra leading. On offense, Zach Ferenz caught the kick off at the 30 yard line and gained a bit more before he was stopped. Ryan Salerno rushed the ball again for a touchdown; Logan Schinzing kicked for the point after. Sierra led 28-14 at the end of the second quarter.
Coleville starts out with the ball in the 3rd quarter, but Sterling Funk tackled, causing a fumble, and leading to Alex Westre recovering the ball. Sierra couldn’t gain enough yardage, casing a turnover. Once again, Sierra had a stellar defense with tackles left and right, but Coleville again managed to catch Sierra off guard and make a touchdown. In response, Falcon Ryan Salerno passed to Seth Houghton, who made it to the 35 yard line. Then, Salerno made a rushing touchdown and Schinzing kicked the point after. After the kickoff, Coleville went back on offense and made another touchdown, leaving the score at 35-32, Sierra leading by a slim margin.
At the beginning of the 4th, the Coleville Wolves once again start on offense. Coleville scored a touchdown, but missed the conversion. Isaiah Jarret ran the ball to the 24 yard line at kickoff. Salerno made a pass to Jake Cummings, who ran it down to the 14 yard line. Salerno makes it to the 4 yard line, then the 2 yard line. At that point, it’s the 4th down and Sierra’s only option was to push through a massive garble of blockers for a rushing touchdown. Sierra made it for a final touchdown, but missed the conversion. For the final two minutes of the game, the Falcons kept a solid defense, the final score being 41-38.
Stats: Senior Zach Ferenz had 20 tackles, 12 solo, 8 assisted, and an interception. Junior Ryan Salerno had 118 passing yards, 221 rushing yards, and 4 rushing touchdowns. Junior Jake Cummings had 89 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 3 sacks, and 3 QB hurries. Senior Cameron Drudge had 10 rushing yards, 1 interception, defended 2 passes, and had 1 touchdown. Sophomore Seth Houghton had 16 receiving yards and 13 tackles, 8 solo and 3 assisted. Junior Sterling Funk caused 1 fumble, defended 1 pass, and had 11 tackles, 6 solo and 5 assisted. Junior Tyrale Luken and sophomore Austin Stone both had 2 QB hurries. Junior Alex Westre had 1 recovered fumble, 23 rushing yards, and 13 receiving yards. Logan Schinzing had 4 kickoffs, which was 284 yards total, 1 touchback, and 5 PAT kicks.