LAKE MILLS — Junior quarterback Cal Loose ran for two touchdowns and passed for a score to lead Port Washington to a 32-12 victory over the host Lakeside Lutheran football team on Friday in nonconference action.
The Pirates forced three fumbles and outgained the Warriors 270-118.
“We moved the ball well at times and at the same time, we struggled to deal with their numbers in the box,” Lakeside Lutheran football coach Matt Doering said. “They loaded the box and we couldn’t stretch the field and make them respect the pass. They were comfortable playing hard downhill and we were not able to consistently take advantage of that.”
Loose went up top on the first play from scrimmage, connecting with senior wide receiver Landon Jankowski for a gain of 29 yards. On fourth-and-3, senior wide receiver Josh Arnold moved the sticks with an 8-yard gain. Loose produced a 7-yard run followed by a 3-yard scoring run, also hitting the extra point to make it 7-0 with 9 minutes, 11 seconds left in the first quarter.
After a Lakeside three-and-out, Port Washington took over at midfield. The Pirates dug deep into their bag of tricks, dialing up a well-executed flea flicker with Loose finding senior running back Sam Pasten for a 40-yard scoring strike.
The Warriors countered with a 12-play, 68-yard touchdown drive lasting six minutes. Senior running back Kaycee Guzman started the proceedings with a 22-yard run and then capped the methodical march by scoring on a 4-yard pitch. Sophomore Mathias Schmidt’s point after missed wide left.
The Pirates’ ensuing drive was bogged down by multiple holding penalties and then cut short when senior defensive back Phil Becraft stripped Pasten and senior defensive lineman Alex Baehr recovered at the Port Washington 43.
Lakeside, however, quickly turned it over on downs when sophomore quarterback Jack Thiele came up two yards short of the sticks on fourth-and-5.
Port Washington, after a bad snap resulted in a 16-yard loss, punted on its ensuing drive. Lakeside senior Ben Krauklis did not field the boot cleanly, allowing Port Washington junior Izaiah Scheftgen to recover at the Lakeside 43.
The Pirates (2-1) drove into the red zone and eventually settled for a 31-yard field goal by Loose with 1:01 remaining in the first half.
Lakeside’s fortunes looked to change in a big way early in the third quarter when Krauklis housed a 92-yard interception return, sending a jolt of energy into the home crowd and pink-clad student section. The two-point conversion attempt failed, leaving the margin 17-12.
“Ben made a nice play on the ball,” Doering said. “He has the speed to go the distance and picked up a couple of key blocks. Once he cut it back and turned on the jets, it turned into a track meet. That put us right back in the game after starting a little slow.”
The Pirates, who bounced back from a 45-6 loss to Grafton in week 2, regained a double-digit edge on a Loose 1-yard run later in the third before adding a 38-yard fumble return TD by junior inside linebacker Ashton Steinert. Arnold’s two-point conversion rush resulted in the final margin.
“Turnovers kind of showed up at crucial times to swing the momentum back in Port Washington’s favor,” Doering said. “In the middle of the game especially, I thought we really competed. Turnovers, especially late, are going to hurt you.
“Defensively, it’s about the simple stuff for us. On one play, we’re in a perfect position but miss a tackle. On another, we don’t get lined up right. We are a little inconsistent in terms of our defensive approach and how we’re lining up. We have to iron those things out and get a little cleaner as the season goes along.”
Senior linebacker Jonathan Schmidt led the Warriors (1-2) with eight tackles while Baehr made six stops, including two for a loss. Offensively, Guzman carried it 12 times for 82 yards behind an offensive line that was without standout senior tackle Thomas Dwyer.
Lakeside travels to face Plymouth (3-0) next Friday.
PORT WASHINGTON 32, LAKESIDE 12
Port Washington 14 3 15 0 — 32
Lakeside 6 0 6 0 — 12
First quarter
PW — Loose 4 run (Loose kick)
PW — Loose 40 pass (Loose kick)
LL — Guzman 3 run (kick failed)
Second quarter
PW — Loose 31 field goal
Third quarter
LL — Krauklis 92 interception return (conversion failed)
PW — Loose 1 run (Loose kick)
PW — Steinert 38 fumble return (Arnold run)
Team statistics — Total plays: PW 66, LL 39; Total yards: PW 270, LL 118; Passing yards: PW 162, LL -2; Rushing yards: PW 108, LL 120; First downs: PW 17, LL 7; Fumbles lost: PW 1, LL 3; Interceptions thrown: PW 1; LL 0; Penalties-yards: PW 7-51, LL 2-10.
Individual statistics — Passing (comp.-att.-yds-td-int): PW Loose 12-19-162-1-1, LL Thiele 1-4-(-2)-0-0; Rushing attempts-yards: PW Sullivan 15-72, LL Guzman 12-82; Receptions-yards: PW Arnold 6-72.
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