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Falcon Sports Archive |
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Falcons End Season With a Bang Nov. 10, 2001 The UW-River Falls football team ended the 2001 campaign with a 38-13 win over UW-Platteville Saturday afternoon at Ramer Field. The 1,275 Parents' Day spectators saw the Falcon offense rush for 401 yards, including 255 yards in a first half that finished with the Falcons up 31-0. The Falcons (4-5, 4-3 in the WIAC) scored on their first five possessions of the game. After the Falcon defense held the Pioneers (4-6, 3-4) to a three and out on their first possession of the game, the offense went 62 yards on three plays to take a 7-0 lead. Quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang called his own number and scampered 56 yards for the score. The Falcons defense then forced the first of its five turnovers on the ensuing possesion, a fumble by wide receiver Jason Leonard at the Falcon 26-yard line. Senior halfback Taylor Hall finished the nine-play, 74-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown run. Hall rushed for 119 yards on 13 carries with three scores in his final game. Senior Dan Toninato's 35-yard field goal and Hall second score of the game gave the Falcons a 24-0 lead with 49 second left in the half. However, the Falcons weren't done yet. On first-and-ten from their own 39, Platteville quarterback Tom Stetzer was intercepted by Matt Palas who reaced down the sideline 44 yards for a touchdown. The Pioneers controlled the ball for much of the second half, ending with 427 yards of total offense, but they could not score until 2:07 left in the third quarter when running back Greg Siebers ran in from 6 yards out. The extra point was blocked, but the lead was cut to 31-6. The Falcons answered with a score just 50 second later. After John Peterlik returned the kickoff 66 yards to the Pioneer 22, Hall scored his third touchdown of the game two plays later. Senior Pioneer quarterback Aaron Mack entered the game in the fourth quarter and threw a touchdown pass to Matt Kent from 35 yards out for the game's final tally. Although the Falcons were outgained 427-400, the defense picked off Pioneer quarterbacks three times and recovered two fumbles. Palas made two of those interceptions. They also stooped Platteville on downs twice. Vogelgesang led the Falcons with 126 yards on the ground with a touchdown. He was 1-of-2 passing for -1 yards. Fullback Shawn Powell had 58 yards on nine carries, and backup quarterback Tom Pulford ran for 49 yards on six attempts. Stetzer went 29-of-40 passing for 222 yards and two interceptions while Mack came to throw for 158 yards on 10-of-21 passing with one score and one interception. Leonard caught eight passes for 45 yards. Kent made seven grabs for 125 yards and a score.
Falcons Win at Oshkosh, 38-17 Nov. 3, 2001 The Falcons snapped a three-game losing streak with a 38-17 win at UW-Oshkosh
Saturday afternoon. The Falcons got on the scoreboard first at 7:59 of the first quarter when quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang scored from one-yard out. Adam Bergdahl kicked his first of five extra points. Oshkosh tied the game at 4:40 of the first quarter when Steve Wagner caught an 8-yard pass from Alan Beversdorf. As time ran out in the quarter, Ohman scored on a 3-yard run to make it 14-7 at the end of the quarrter. The Falcons scored the only points of the second quarter when Ohman scored on a 29-yard run with 9:13 to play. With 11:11 to play in the third quarter Bergdahl kicked a 37-yard field goal to give the Falcons a 24-7 lead. Oshkosh crawled back into the game. Wagner caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Beversdorf at :44 of the quarter and David Gaulke booted a 42-yard field goal at 8:06 of the fourth quarter to cut the Falcon lead to 24-17. But with just 1:41 to play Ohman scored on another 1-yard run. Linebacker Matt Palas ended the scoring when he intercepted a Beversdorf pass and returned it 55-yards for a touchdown with 1:01 to play. Ohman carried the ball 30 times for his 143 yards and halfback Taylor Hall ran the ball 13 times and gained 133 yards. Defensively the Falcons had a strong game allowing Oshkosh just 35 rushing and 258 passing yards. Neil Mantor and Ben Gray also intercepted passes while end Nick Basham and tackle Jeremy Larson had fumble recoveries. Larson had 2.5 sacks and Basham two. Linebacker Nate Mueller led the team with five solo and four assisted tackles. He had two trackles for loss. The Falcons will end the season on Saturday when they host UW-Platteville in the annual Parents' Day game at Ramer Field. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. Falcons Drubbed in Third Straight Loss Oct. 27, 2001 UW-La Crosse held the Falcon rushing attack to 122 yards and forced three turnovers in defeating UW-River Falls, 31-9, Saturday afternoon at Ramer Field. The Homecoming crowd of 3,213 watched the Falcons (2-5, 2-3 in the WIAC) struggle on offense for the third consecutive game. The team gained 300 total yards, but gained just 103 yards in the first half and were unable to convert on third down where they were 1-for-13. The Eagles (3-3, 3-2) were 9-for-18 on third down in the contest. La Crosse took the lead on their first possesion of the game when running back Andrew Mocadlo bulled his way into the end zone from 5 yards out. The 10-play, 61- yard drive gave the Eagles a 7-0 lead. Mocadlo gained 74 yards on 2 carries for the Eagles. The Eagles rushed for a total of 163 yards. In the second quarter, Bryan Morris' 36-yard field goal with 13:40 remaining in the half gave the Eagles a 10-point advantage. The Falcons would cut the lead to 10-3 on Adam Bergdahl's 42-yard field goal with 4:11 left in the half. With 1:33 left in the half, quarterback Josh Boraas found Dan Zellner for an 18-yard touchdown strike to give the Eagles a 17-3 halftime advantage. The score would remain the same until tight end Chester Janke scored on a 23-yard reception from Boraas with 5:08 left in the game. On the ensuing possesion, Eagle safety Jeremy Unertl returned a Falcon fumble 34 yards for a touchdown and a 31-3 La Crosse lead. The Falcons tallied their lone touchdown with 2:20 left in the game when quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang scored on a 2-yard plunge. The extra point was blocked. Vogelgesang finished with 12 yards on 16 carries. He was also 7-of-13 passing for 178 yards. Wide receiver Scott Kusilek made four recpetions for 78 yards while halfback Taylor Hall had three catches for 100 yards. Hall also led the Falcon rushing attack with 33 yards on three carries. Byron Grossenbacher and Rob Ohman each gained 30 yards Boraas finished 16-of-27 passing for 201 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Wide receiver Matt Rizzo became the Eagles' top single-season pass receiver by catching five passes for 77 yards. The Falcon defense kept the team close for much of the game. Defensive end Nick Basham tallied three sacks in the contest. The Falcon will next travel to UW-Oshksoh on Nov. 3 to face the Titans. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
UW-Stout Comes Back to Beat Falcons Oct. 20, 2001 The UW-River Falls football team took an early 20-0 lead, but couldn't hold on, losing 26-23 against the Blue Devils at Williams Stadium Saturday afternoon. Down 20-0 with 11:55 remaining in the first quarter, Stout (4-2, 2-2 in the WIAC) clawed back into game. They cut the lead to 20-7 after covering 85 yards on four plays when quarterback Nick Ohman found wide receiver Tony Beckham for a 27-yard touchdown strike. After Falcon fullback Rob Ohman fumbled, giving the Blue Devils the ball at the River Falls 30-yard line, The Blue Devil signal caller Ohman threw his second touchdown pass of the game, 28-yarder to Julio Vargas. The extra point failed, so the Falcons maintained a 20-13 lead after the first period. Eric Baker's 1-yard scoring plunge in the second quarter knotted the score going into halftime. The second half turned into a defensive struggle as the teams traded field goals in the third quarter. Stout kicker Justin Zmyewski won the game with a 35-yard field goal with 8:07 remaining in the game. It looked like the Falcons (2-4, 2-2) were going to have an easy time against Stout as they scored 20 points in the first 3:05 of the game. After the Blue Devile went three and out on their first possession, the Falcons blocked a Chris Parent punt. Falcon Aaron Greisen picked the ball up at the 2-yard line and scored. The extra point was blocked, but the Falcons had a 6-0 lead. The Blue Devils fumbled on the ensuing kickoff, giving the Falcons the ball at the 21-yard line. Two plays later, Rob Ohman scored from 20 yards out. On Stout's third possession of the game, defensive lineman Jeremy Larson sacked quarterback Nick Ohman, forcing a fumble at the Stout 2-yard line. Larson recovered the fumble and scored the Falcons third touchdown of the game, which gave the Falcons a 20-0 lead. For the second straight week, the Falcon offense struggled. The Falcons were outgained 248-223, with all their offense coming on the ground. Fullback Rob Ohman accounted for 103 yards on 25 carries. Halfback Taylor Hall rushed for 82 yards on 15 attempts. Halfback John Peterlik gained 20 yards on five rushes, and quarterbcak Dustin Vogelgesang ran for 15 yards on 12 attempts. The Falcon defense held the Blue Devils to just 84 yards on the ground, while quarterback Nick Ohman went 10-of-16 through the air for 164 yards and two touchdowns. The Falcons are now in a six-way logjam for second place in the WIAC. They will next play UW-La Crosse on Oct. 26 in the annual Homecoming game. Kickoff is set of 1 p.m. Football Team Drops 12-7 Decision at UW-Stevens Point Oct. 13, 2001 UW-River Falls' wishbone attack was held to 61 yards in the second half and UW-Stevens Point scored 12 unanswered points to beat the Falcons 12-7 in WIAC play Saturday afternoon at Goerke Field. With the Falcons (2-3, 2-1 in the WIAC) leading 7-3, Pointer quarterback Scott Krause scampered in from 31 yards out to give Stevens Point (4-1, 2-1) the lead with 10:51 remaining in the contest. The extra point attempt failed as the Pointers took a 9-7 lead. Ricardo Vega would later add a 30-yard field goal for the game's final tally. The Falcons scored the only points of the first half when quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang found halfback John Peterlik for a 61-yard touchdown strike. The extra point gave the Falcons a 7-0 lead. However, that was the Falcons' only big play of the day as they were held to 275 total yards with only 143 yards coming on the ground. The Pointers' defense did not allow a run over 14 yards. The Falcons did not cross the midfield stripe in the second half. Halfback Taylor Hall led the Falcons with 47 yards rushing on 12 carries. Fullback Rob Ohman added 46 yards on 20 carries. With a stagnant running game, the Falcons were forced to put the ball in the air. Dustin Vogegesang went 4 of 10 passing for 132 yards and a touchdown. Hall caught two passes for 64 yards. Peterlik made the touchdown recpetion of 61 yards, and Scott Kusilek added one catch for seven yards. The Falcons' defense played equally well, giving up just 280 yards of total offense. They also forced four Krause interceptions, including two each by Matt Palas and Neil Mantor. Linebacker Jed Kennedy led the Falcons with 10 tackles. The loss drops the Falcons into a four-way tie for first place in the WIAC with Stevens Point, UW-Platteville and UW-Eau Claire. The Falcons will try and rebound next Saturday when they travel to UW-Stout. Game time is 1 p.m. Falcons Beat Blugolds on Extra Point Block Oct. 6, 2001 Linebacker Matt Palas blocked Nick Diciaula's extra point attempt in the second overtime to lift the Falcons to a 24-23 victory over UW-Eau Claire Saturday afternoon at Ramer Field. It appeared the Blugolds (4-1, 1-1 in the WIAC) would force a third overtime session when running back Darrell Souhrada scored from a yard out, but Palas came through the line untouched to bat the extra point attempt away. The Falcons (2-2, 2-0) took a 24-17 lead on Taylor Hall's 11-yard touchdown run, his third touchdown of the game. With the Falcons leading 14-7, Souhrada's first 1-yard touchdown plunge of the game with 4:40 remaining in the fourth quarter, tied the score at 14-14. The Falcons then embarked on a 14-play, 63-yard drive that resulted is a 31-yard field goal attempt by Adam Bergdahl. However, holder Dan Toninato mishandled the snap, rolled right, and threw an interception to end the threat. Both team's scored field goals in the first overtime. Diciaula made a 25-yard field goal to give the Blugolds a 17-14 lead, but Bergdahl came back and nailed a 40-yard ateempt that just sailed over the crossbar. The Blugolds scored first when Toninato's punt was blocked in the end zone and recovered by Mike Eubanks with 3:54 remaining in the first quarter. The Falcons came back to score twice before intermission to take a 14-7 lead. Hall scored on carries on 5 and 2 yards. Free safety Luke Miska set up the first touchdown with an interception return to the Blugold 19-yard line. The Falcons were outgained by the Blugolds 345-294, but the Blugolds could not capitalize on good field position. Diciaula had a 20-yard field goal blocked modwaay through the third quarter. On their next possession, the Blugolds turned the ball over on downs deep inside Falcon territory. The Falcons gained all their yardage on the ground. Hall led the team with 81 yards on 22 carries and three touchdowns. Quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang rushed the ball 20 times for 66 yards, and Terrence Galbreath gained 37 yards on seven carries. Souhrada led the Blugolds in rushing, gaining 153 yards on 38 carries. He also scored two touchdowns. Blugold Quarterback Brian Rasmussen completed 12 of 30 passes for 208
yards. Wide receiver Chad Crutchley had six of those receptions for 157
yards. The Falcons, now 2-0 in the WIAC, will travel to UW-Stevens Point next week to face the Pointers. Game time is 1 p.m.
Falcons Win Conference Opener at UW-Whitewater, 34-31 Sept. 29, 2001 Behind 490 rushing yards, the UW-River Falls football team defeated UW-Whitewater, 34-31, in front of 3,323 spectators at Perkins Stadium in Whitewater. With 6:24 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Falcons took the lead when quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang scored on a 1-yard touchdown run, his fourth touchdown of the game. The score was set up by a 71-yard run by Taylor Hall. Hall had a big day for the Falcons, rushing for 219 yards on 20 carries. The Falcons trailed 24-20 heading into the final quarter, but took a 27-24 lead after Vogelgesang's third touchdown plunge of the game, from 1-yard out with 10:20 remaining. The Warhawks answered on their next possesion, an 8-play, 69-yard drive capped off by a 4-yard touchdown pass from Randy Borgardt to Steve Tenhagen with 8:08 left in the game. The Falcons (1-2, 1-0 in the WIAC) came back from a 16-6 deficit after the first quarter. The Warhawks scored on a 1-yard run from Keiya Square, and Steve Tenhagan recovered a fumble in the end zone for a 14-0 lead. After Vogelgesang scored from 2-yards out, Andy Lobdall returned the point after for a two-point conversion for Whitewater. The Falcons cut Whitewater's lead to 24-20 going into halftime. Vogelgesang's 4-yard scamper and fullback Terrance Galbreath's 1-yard run gave the Falcons their first lead of the game at 20-16, but Tenhagen scored on an 18-yard touchdown strike from Borgardt with just :23 left in the half. The Falcons stopped Whitewater's final two drives with interceptions. Matt Palas picked off a Borgardt pass with 6:08 to play. The Falcons took 3:31 off the clock before missing a 39-yard field goal attempt. UWW got the ball back adn Luke Miska picked off a Borgardt pass with 1:46 to go. The Falcons ran out the clock to get the win. The Falcons outgained the Warhawks 538-430. As usual, the Falcons did most of their damage on the ground, gaining 490 yards on 81 attempts. Besides the leading rusher Hall, John Peterlik added 95 yards on 10 carries. Vogegesang rushed for 75 yards on 25 attempts, and Bryon Grossenbacher went for 59 yards on eight carries. Galbreath added 39 yards. The Warhawks were forced to move the ball through the air. Borgardt threw for 164 yards on 10 of 17 passing. He threw a pair of touchdowns and was picked off twice. Reggie Strauss was 7 of 15 for 190 yards and a score.
Falcon Game at Trinity Cancelled Sept. 12, 2001 The Falcons football game at Trinity, Texas, University scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 15 has been cancelled. Travel uncertainties after the tragic events on Tuesday were cited as the main reasons for the cancellation. "Not knowing if the team will be able to leave on Friday morning
creates too much uncertainty for the athletes and their family as well
as our staff," UW-River Falls Athletic Director Connie Foster said
after the decision to cancel the trip was made at about 3 p.m. on Wednesday.
University officials also investigated the possibility of bus travel. But that option meant the team would have to leave as early as Thursday morning and that did not leave enough time to make all of the arrangements. "There is talk of declaring a national day of mourning. This could be declared for Saturday and then all games would be cancelled," said Foster. "We don't like canceling this trip, but under the circumstances I don't think we have a choice." There has been no discussion between the teams of a makeup date. UW-River Falls has an open date on its schedule on Sept. 22, but Trinity is scheduled to host DePauw University. The Falcons, under coach John O'Grady, then open WIAC play on Sept. 29 at UW-Whitewater and have WIAC games scheduled for the next six weekends. Falcons Lose at Central, 42-13 Sept. 8, 2001 The Falcons dropped a 42-13 decision at Central, Iowa, College on Saturday afternoon. Central, now 1-0, outgained the Falcons in total yardage, 372-267. Central
led 28-7 at the half and 42-7 after three quarters. In the third quarter Borgman and McCullough combined on another touchdown play, this one covering 22 yards at 14:16. At 2:12 Borgman scored on a one-yard run. The Falcons got on the board again with just two seconds to play when Chad Koranda scored on a four-yard run. Galbreath led the Falcons with 93 rushing yards and Dustin Vogelgesang
added 77 rushing yards. Vogelgesang was 0-5 passing. Borgman completed
20-25 passes for 302 yards and three scores. McCullough caught eight passes
for 133 yards. Falcons Drop Season Opener to Chadron State Sept. 1, 2001 The Falcons fell to the Eagles of Chadron State, 45-18, in front of 2,758 spectators at Ramer Field Saturday afternoon. After the Eagles took a 7-0 lead on their first possession of the game, the Falcons responded with a 49-yard scoring drive late in the first quarter. Falcon quarterback Dustin Vogelgesang opened the four-play scoring drive with a 41-yard strike to Taylor Hall. Three plays later, Vogelgesang scored from 6 yards out to tie the game. The Falcon defense stopped the Eagle attack and gave the offense the ball at the Chadron St. 14-yard line when punter Matt Strand dropped the snap. The Falcons would take their only lead of the ball game when freshman kicker Adam Bergdahl hit a 25-yard field goal with 1:29 remaining in the first quarter. Chadron State reeled off 24 unanswered points in the second and third quarters to take control. After Ryan Larson kicked a 27-yard field goal to tie the game at 10-10, running back Peter Holak rushed three touchdowns. His 1-yard plunge with 4:07 left in the seocnd quarter gave Eagles the lead for good. In the third quarter, Holak scored on runs from 3 and 6 yards. The Falcons cut the lead to 31-18, when Vogelgesang found Bryon Grossebacher for a 29-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion cut the lead to 13. Holak ran for his fourth touchdown of the day on the Eagles' next possesion, a 12-yard scamper to give the Eagles a 38-18 lead, and wide receiver Beau Sheets ended the scoring with a 53-yard touchdown reception. The Eagles outgained the Falcons 500-212 in the contest. Eagle quarterback Matt Strand was 24 for 35 for 309 yards and a touchdown. Holak rushed 19 times for 84 yards and four scores. Jason Carnahan and Jeremy Shedeed each had six receptions for the Eagles. Fullback Rob Ohman led the Falcons with 77 yards on 18 carries. Halfback Taylor Hall carried theball seven times for 27 yards and caught one pass for 41 yards. Bryon Grossenbacher gained 18 yards on three carries and caught the 29-yard touchdown pass. Vogegesang rushed for 16 yards on 12 carries. The Falcons were 1-of-13 on third down conversions while Chadron State went 6-of-16. The Falcons fall to 0-1 on the season and will travel to Pella, Iowa to take on Central College next Saturday. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. |