By Kevin Cunningham
Sports Correspondent
The rain was pouring throughout the Whippets’ football game on Friday night at home against East Troy, a game featuring two teams with 1-3 records on the season.
Because of the rain early on, the teams needed time to adjust to the conditions, and through one quarter, neither team found the end-zone, and kickers couldn’t get the ball between the uprights.
“The weather had some impact on how offenses were moving the ball and with ball security in general, but both defenses also played fairly well, which led to the scoreless first quarter,” Whippets head coach Tom Grosinske said.
The Whippets forced a fumble early, but couldn’t capitalize. East Troy, starting in the second quarter, got things going on the ground, scoring on a four-yard touchdown run. The lone touchdown gave the Whippets a 7-0 deficit entering halftime.
“At halftime we told [the players] we were once again right in the game and their offense that had scored 44 points the week before against Jefferson was finding it much more difficult against our defense,” Grosinske said. “We also discussed how much we needed our offense to sustain drives and point some pressure on their defense. Our kids were pretty confident rolling into the second half.”
Despite the message, inconsistent play ensued in the second half. East Troy racked up a couple more scored on the ground in the third, of three and six yards each, respectively.
Grosinske said the defensive line would get penetration and shut down the run on one play, then the next, the East Troy backs would get to the second level very quickly. In the fourth quarter, the fourth rushing touchdown of the night took place for East Troy, and their different running back scored.
Whippet quarterback Daniel Fuller struggled through the air, completing just six of his 28 throws for 74 yards and three interceptions. Game circumstances and dropped balls didn’t help the signal-caller, Grosinske said.
“Some of the decision to throw the ball a bit more than we normally would have was a result of us not being able to get the ground game in motion,” Grosinske said. “We also saw some things offensively that we wanted to exploit through our passing game. A combination of missed reads and dropped balls would eventually halt any momentum we would generate.”
Whitewater’s leading rusher was also Fuller, who ran two times for a total of 17 yards. Running back Bryan Parker had 11 carries for seven yards on the night.
Parker also led the team in receiving, catching three balls for 52 yards. Defensively, Ernie Magana led the way with eight tackles. Despite the 28-0 defeat, Grosinske said he is looking forward to the team’s next game on the road against Jefferson.
“Jefferson is a very run-heavy team and that isn’t any different this year,” Grosinske said. “We need to be very gap-sound and disciplined, and be ready to wrap-up and tackle. If we keep their ground game in check, we will be successful.”
Both teams entering Friday’s game are 1-4 overall, and to this point in the season, Jefferson has amassed over 1,200 yards on the ground compared to just 230 through the air. The game is set for a 7 p.m. start at Jefferson High School.
