Photo by Lee Epps
Rushford-Peterson football went on the road and opened its season with a defensive-minded win over Medford. The Tigers first three drives netted a combined 75 yards, but their last six went for negative yardage. The Trojan defense played inspired ball in the second half. Offensively, R-P took advantage of two third quarter short fields. After a 12-yard Medford punt set the Trojans up at the Tiger 35, R-P used a 25-yard Jonah Bunke run to get in the red zone. Riley Tesch’s 11-yard TD pass to Grady Hengel on 3rd and 6 (with kick) put the Trojans up 7-0. Medford’s next series saw Trojan Andrew Wilkemeyer net a big tackle for loss on 4th and 2, again setting R-P up in Tiger territory. On R-P’s second offensive play, Bunke broke free for a 35-yard TD run. A second PAT made it 14-0, as both Trojans scoring drives went 35 yards. All told, the Tigers netted just 66 yards total offense and three first downs. They had zero second half first downs. R-P put up 239 yards total offense and 10 first downs. The Trojans pitched a shut-out in posting a 14-0 win. Wilkemeyer, a 6’3” 240-pound senior DT, had four tackles for loss including a sack. Bunke (16-106, TD rushing) led the ground attack. Tesch (10 of 18, 119 yards, TD, INT passing) led the aerial game. Dalton Hoel (6-58 receiving) was his favorite target. Titan Tekautz (4-30 rushing) and Bowen Woodward (2-34 receiving) also amassed yards. R-P won despite losing the turnover battle 3 to 0. Three of their first five drives ended in turnover, including an opening series that made the Tiger one-yard-line (fumble). The Trojans also had a 41-yard TD pass and a 60-yard punt return TD called back by penalties in the first half.
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