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ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Jacob Berendes
Shullsburg QB tosses school record 6 TDs in win over Belmont
Shulls FB Berendes color
Senior quarterback Jacob Berendes completed 18-of-33 passes for 250 yards and a school record 6 touchdowns in Friday's 638 win over Belmont.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Swnews4u.com Athlete of the Week is a web-only feature that will publish each Thursday throughout the calendar year.

Jacob Berendes, Sr., QB, Shullsburg football

     Senior quarterback Jacob Berendes tossed his way into the Shullsburg record book for the second straight week by firing six touchdown passes — all in the first half — to lead the host Miners to a 63–8 Six Rivers Conference victory over Belmont last Friday night at Badger Park. Berendes’ record-setting performance earns him this week’s Mast Water Technology SWNews4U.com Athlete of the Week award.

     Berendes, who set the Shullsburg single-game passing yardage last week with 356 yards in a narrow 26–22 loss to Highland, set the mark for TD passes in a game with six and only need one half of football to get there. He also ran for a first-half score as the Miners (1–2, 1–2 SRC) raced out to a 49–8 lead. Belmont (0–3) put the first points on the board, but it was all Shullsburg from there.

Berendes completed back-to-back touchdown passes to senior Alex Wand for eight and 14 yards, then tossed a 7-yard strike to sophomore Brandon Hopman to extend the lead to 20–8.

     Senior Griffin Wiegel hauled in touchdown passes of 35 and 25 yards from Berendes in the second quarter, while Troy Turpin was on the receiving end of Berendes record-setting sixth TD pass — from 14 yards out later in the quarter. The senior QB scored on a 2-yard scramble late in the half to make it 49–8. Berendes finished 18 of 33 for 250 yards and six TDs in the half. 

 

HONORABLE MENTION (in alphabetical order):

Payton Heinberg, Sr., Darlington cross country

     Heinberg finished second overall with a time of 19:29.1 to lead the Darlington boys to the championship of Saturday’s muddy 2018 Darlington Cross Country Invitational. Heinberg led a group of three Redbirds to finish in the top 10 as Darlington beat runner-up Mount Horeb by 18 points for the boys’ title, 49–67.

 

Lydia Murphy, Sr., Lancaster girls’ cross country

     Murphy crossed the finish line in 21:17 to place fourth out of 112 runners in Saturday’s muddy 2018 Darlington Cross Country Invitational and helped the Flying Arrows win the girls’ team title by 13 points over host Darlington. The Lady Arrows, who finished second at state in Division 3 a year ago, scored 64 team points to edge the host Rebirds (77) at the 14-team meet.

 

Mason Reuter, Sr., RB/LB, Cuba City football

     Reuter rushed for a game-high 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns to spur Cuba City’s second-half comeback in Friday’s 27–20 SWAL victory over visiting Darlington. Reuter scored on 2-yard run midway through the second quarter after the Cubans had fallen behind 20–0, then scored on a 19-yard run early in the third quarter as Cuba City grabbed a 21–20 lead.

 

Roslyn Johnson, OH/MH, Richland Center

     Johnson led the Hornets to four straight wins to lead Richland Center to the championship of Saturday’s 12-team Richland Center Invitational. Johnson had nine kills and 13 digs in a 25–23, 25–21 sweep of Fennimore. She then had 14 kills, 19 digs and three blocks in a 25–23, 25–23 semifinal victory over Reedsburg. Johnson finished with 10 kills and 10 digs in a 21–25, 25–22, 15–13 championship victory over Platteville