(Audubon) Cade Ticknor got his hands on two turnovers in the first few minutes and Lane Spieker posted another banner night as CAM stayed undefeated with a 58-42 win against Audubon. The Cougars jumped out to leads of 24-0 and 30-8 before Audubon scrapped their way back into the contest.
Spieker carried the load for coach Barry Bower’s team with 375 rushing yards on 42 carries with 7 TD’s. He added 68 passing yards and one score through the air. Audubon’s big star delivered a clutch performance as well. Wheeler senior Gavin Smith ran 41 times for 206 yards and 3 TD’s along with 40 yards passing and a touchdown.
Spieker’s pass break up on Audubon’s first offensive possession allowed Cade Ticknor to come up with an early interception. CAM scored two plays later. Spieker made a 36 yard run on the Cougar’s first play from scrimmage and plunged in from a yard out on his 2nd carry. The two-point conversion was good and with 9:38 to go in the first quarter the visitors were up 8-0.
Ticknor wrestled away a handoff between Gavin Smith and Carter Andreasen on Audubon’s next series and returned the ball down inside the 15 yard line. Spieker capitalized on the takeaway with a 13 yard rushing score on a one play drive. Another successful two-point try extended CAM’s lead to 16-0 with 7:25 to go in the 1st.
Spieker, who entered the game with over 1,000 rushing yards in the first four contests, broke free on a 51 yarder late in the first to keep the hammer down. With CAM leading 24-0, Audubon started to fight back. An option pitch to Carter Andreasen resulted in the Wheeler’s first score of the night. Andreasen broke a couple of tackles and managed to stay in bounds before racing up the right sideline for a 63 yard score. He finished the night with 154 yards and two TD’s on 13 carries. Audubon’s initial TD made it a 24-8 game in favor of CAM.
CAM responded quickly on an eight yard run by Spieker to lead 30-8. Audubon swung the momentum with three unanswered scores in the 2nd quarter. Gavin Smith had a ten yard TD run, Braden Wessel hauled in an 18-yard TD from Smith on a 4th and 10 play, and Smith carried in from five yards out to get Audubon within 30-28. Gavin Larsen intercepted a pass in the second quarter to help sway things in Audubon’s favor.
CAM’s final drive of the first half was a critical one in the final outcome. They covered 52 yards in less than :30 on a 32 yard pass from Spieker to Joe Kauffman, followed by a 20 yard TD catch by Ticknor on the final play before intermission. Ticknor caught a shallow crossing route and broke a tackle inside the five yard line to make CAM’s halftime edge 36-28.
Gavin Smith’s 24 yard keeper on the first possession of the third quarter gave Audubon a chance to tie. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful however and CAM maintained a 36-34 lead. Smith’s score was set up by a Garrett Christensen fumble recovery.
CAM regained control as the third quarter wore on. A heavy dose of Lane Spieker was the ticket. Outside of two-point conversion attempts he was the only Cougar player to run the ball all night. Spieker had scoring runs of two and 48 yards in the 3rd quarter to stretch CAM’s edge back up to 16 at 50-34.
Audubon got a nine yard TD run by Andreasen early in the 4th to keep a sliver of hope alive, but CAM closed the door with Spieker’s 7th TD carry of the evening with 4:58 left for a 58-42 final. Spieker’s big night was a byproduct of rushing lanes opened by Reese Oglesbee, Nolan Hensley, and Gavyn Jessen. Ticknor was in on 15 tackles including nine solos. Gabe Rose made 11 solo stops and six assists. Jack Follmann was in on 10 stops with nine tackles for Joe Kauffman.
The Cougars go to 5-0 and will host Exira-EHK for homecoming next week. KSOM will broadcast the game from Anita. Audubon suffers their first regular season loss since Week 1 of the 2019 season. It’s the Wheeler’s first home loss since falling to eventual state runner-up St. Mary’s, Remsen in the playoffs in 2017. Audubon was down two vital starters with injuries as Matthew Beisswenger and Joey Schramm each sat out the contest. The Wheelers are at Coon Rapids-Bayard next week.
