(Wayland) Senior Braden Wessel’s 70-yard punt return for a touchdown with just under 2:00 to play gave Audubon a 34-30 win against previously unbeaten WACO on Thursday night. The Wheelers will take a 10-1 record into a state semifinal at the UNI-Dome against undefeated CAM next week.
Audubon coach Sean Birks had nothing but praise for Wessel after the game. “He is about getting the win. Braden is such a smart, high IQ kid. He knows where to be at all times and puts himself in a great spot. Nobody deserves it more than that kid to be bluntly honest. He’s a kid that doesn’t miss the weight room. He’s a kid that doesn’t miss class. He doesn’t put himself first over the team. He doesn’t do anything selfish. He’s just an awesome kid and he’s been that way for as long as I’ve known him since he was a 10-year-old kid in my fourth grade class. He’s one of those kids that everyone enjoys and likes to be around, a great friend, a great teammate. So to finally flip it and have the spotlight on him I’m excited for him to have that moment. He’ll have that moment for the rest of his life and he deserves that.” Wessel posted 38 yards rushing and 63 receiving.
Thursday’s quarterfinal contest featured several momentum swings. Audubon turned it over early in the first. WACO’s fumble recovery at the Wheeler 25 yard line was their 34th takeaway of the season. The Warrior offense cashed in with a 38-yard field goal to lead 3-0.
A stingy WACO defense stuffed Audubon’s rushing attack for the better part of the first half. The Wheelers quickly faced with a third and long on their second possession when Carter Andreasen came up with a 65 yard TD catch from Gavin Smith. Matthew Beisswenger’s PAT put the visitors in front 7-3. Andreasen had a big night with 96 yards from scrimmage and three trips to the end zone.
WACO stormed back in front with two touchdowns in the 2nd quarter. Jon Rice carried in from nine yards out with 11:56 to go in the half and Simeon Reichenback pushed the lead to 16-7 with his 49 yard scramble midway through the 2nd.
Audubon got a 17-yard scoring run from Andreasen in the 2nd to close within 16-14 at half. The Wheelers seized the momentum early in the 3rd. Andreasen made back-to-back tackles for loss and the Audubon defense momentarily slowed a powerful WACO rushing attack. The senior also kept the Audubon offense going with a go-ahead scoring run from nine yards out just 3:09 into the 2nd half. Gavin Smith, who was held to three yards on seven carries in the first half, got on track after the break. His first five carries of the 3rd quarter spanned 70 yards including a 23 yard score to extend the lead to 28-16. Smith ran 82 yards on 20 attempts and completed 4/7 passes for 147 yards. He had a hand in two TD’s on the night.
WACO wasn’t done. Reichenback ran for 161 yards and two scores on 27 carries. John Rice and Drew Diers combined to add 77 yards to the team’s rushing total of 245. Rice carried in from four yards out with 10:44 to play to snug it up to 28-23. Reichenback gave the home squad the lead on a 35-yard scoring run with 7:25 remaining.
Audubon was forced to punt the ball away with 5:00 left and their defense rose to the occasion to give them a chance to win it late. Gavin Larsen had nine solo tackles and seven assists, Gavin Smith made seven solos and seven assists, Joey Schramm had six solos and six assists. With a 30-28 lead heading down the stretch, WACO was able to milk three minutes off the clock before being forced to punt.
Reichenback got away a boomer, but Wessel made the biggest play of his career at the most opportune time. His 70 yard run back was his third punt return score of the season and second in as many weeks after a 49-yard TD return last round against Montezuma.
Manny Beisswenger intercepted a deep pass in the final minute to seal the win. The Wheelers head back to the dome where they were a state runner-up in 2019. Senior Gavin Smith Says, “A couple of us played here and there, but that wasn’t our team. This is our team. We’ve been playing together since Warriors in 4th and 5th grade. Just to finally see it all come to shape and achieve our goals that we’ve been wanting all year, we knew what we wanted to do we just had to go out there and make the plays, we were able to do it and it feels amazing.”
KSOM will broadcast the CAM/Audubon rematch on Wednesday, November 10th at 10:00 a.m. The Cougars downed the Wheelers 58-42 earlier this season. The other semifinal has Easton Valley against St. Mary’s, Remsen at 1:00 p.m.
Gavin Smith:
Braden Wessel:
Carter Andreasen:
