BELMONT - Typically, when Potosi and Belmont meet on the football field, you can throw out the records and know it’s going to be a hard-fought battle.
That’s exactly what the undefeated Chieftains got last Friday night when they traveled to Belmont to battle the Braves, who entered the game with a Six Rivers record of 2-1.
By the time the final seconds had ticked off the clock, coach Mark Siegert’s squad remained undefeated (4-0, 3-0) with a 24-6 victory over the Braves (2-2, 2-2).
“Anytime we meet Belmont, it seems like they do a really good job of taking us out of any kind of offensive rhythm, just by the style of play that they have,” said coach Siegert.
“It was a challenge, especially in that first half for our kids to get used to a little bit of a slowed-down tempo. But, once we adjusted to that, I thought we did a pretty nice job.”
The two team’s swapped scores in the first quarter, Belmont getting a six-yard TD run from David Stoney, that was set up by a Chieftain fumble deep in their own territory, and Potosi a 3-yard TD plunge from junior Jase Udelhofen.
In the second quarter, Alex Wright put the Chieftains up 12-6 with an 18-yard TD run. As with their first touchdown, the extra-point kick was missed.
Belmont had a golden opportunity to tie the game just before the half when Brandon Wedig intercepted a Tim Fritz pass at the Potosi 23 with under a minute left in the second quarter.
But on the very next play Fritz intercepted an Avery Wilborn pass at the goal line to end the threat.
The Chieftains went on to score one more touchdown in each of the third and fourth quarters, a five-yard run from Udelhofen in the third, and a five-yard run by Wright in the fourth.
The biggest difference in the outcome was that the Braves were unable to match Potosi score for score, coming up short against a stingy Chieftain defense.
Potosi concluded the night rushing for 290 yards and four scores on 35 attempts.
Udelhofen led all rushers with 115 yards and two TDs on 15 carries, while Spencer Hawes added 75 yards on eight attempts. Wright carried the ball nine times for 55 yards and two TDs.
The Braves managed 230 yards on 50 rushing attempts, but completed just 2-of-12 passing attempts for 22 yards and threw three interceptions.
Fritz, a junior defensive back, had two picks, while senior linebacker Tom Keene had the other.
From his quarterback position, Fritz completed 6-of-16 passing attempts for 99 yards and one interception.
He connected with junior wide out Hunter Leibfried five times for 96 yards.
Defensively, the Chieftains were led in tackles by Tom Keene, who had 24 total stops and the one interception.
Hawes and Wright were each in on 13 tackles, while Alex Reinecke and Jase Udelhofen were each in on 12.
Now 3-0 in the Six Rivers conference and 4-0 overall, the Chieftains host Pecatonica/Argyle (2-2, 2-1), who is coming off a 35-18 victory over River Ridge.
For coach Mark Siegert and the Chieftains, the next game is always the most important, and that is exactly how they progress through the schedule.
“We have a long way to go as far as reaching any of our goals,” said Siegert. “Obviously we’re 4-0, so that’s right where we want to be, but we just try to take it one game at a time, and this coming week against Pec. is our biggest game of the season.”
Potosi 24, Belmont 6
(from Friday, Sept. 9 @ Belmont)
Potosi 6 6 6 6 - 24
Belmont 6 0 0 0 - 6
B - David Stoney 6 run (run failed)
P - Jace Udelhofen 3 run (kick failed)
P - Alex Wright 1 run (kick failed)
P - Udelhofen 10 run (kick failed)
P - Wright 5 run (kick failed)
Team statistics
First downs - P 15, B 16. Rushing - P 35-290, B 50-230. Passing yards - P 98, B 22. Passes - P 6-17-1, B 2-12-3. Fumbles lost - P 2, B 1. Penalties-yards - P 5-50, B 11-80.
Individual leaders
Rushing - P: Jace Udelhofen 12-93; B: Brandon Wedig 22-82. Passing - P: Tim Fritz 6-17-0, 98; B: Avery Wilborn 2-12-0, 22. Receiving - P: Hunter Leibfried 4-75; B: Jeremy Richardson 2-22.
