T-cats knock off ACH, advance to quarterfinals with Liberty Christian

The LaCrosse-Washtucna/Kahlotus Tigercats defeated the Almira-Coulee/Hartline Warriors, 52-36, on Friday night during the first round of state playoffs in Coulee City.

The game began with an immediate touchdown for the Warriors when Drew Isaak returned the kickoff for a 60-yard touchdown. The Warriors converted the extra point play to give them an early 8-0 lead over the Tigercats.

The Tigercats did not waste any time responding to the Warriors early lead, and Sawyer Hostetler ran into the end zone with 9:28 remaining on the clock in the first quarter. Alec Fleming carried the ball for the extra two points, moving the game into an early tie.

The first quarter would continue to be a back and forth battle between the two teams, with ACH scoring their second touchdown off of a 13-yard pass with 4:53 remaining. The Warriors attempted to run in the extra point, but were stopped short of the goal line by the Tigercats’ defensive line.

The Tigercats would then march down the field to score the final touchdown of the quarter with a three-yard run by Johnathan Holdren. On the two-point play, Holdren snuck away from the Warrior defenders to be open in the end zone and receive a pass from Joey Guske.

Holdren’s touchdown would end the first quarter scoring, bringing the score to 16-14 in favor of the Tigercats. The Tigercats would maintain the lead for the remainder of the game, amidst countless penalties and a second half injury.

The second quarter scoring would be attributed to successful passes from Guske. Guske completed a 26-yard pass to Fleming for the first points of the quarter. After the touchdown, Guske carried the ball into the end zone for the additional two points.

With 4:14 remaining in the half, Sam Harder grabbed a 40-yard pass from Guske, running it to the end zone for the Tigercats’ final points of the half. The two-point conversion pass from Guske was incomplete.

ACH would score their first and only touchdown of the quarter with 2:12 on the clock, off of a pass play. The Warriors converted the two-point play, bringing the halftime score to 30-22.

The second half scoring was limited to the final five minutes of the third quarter, after both teams played solid defense and received multiple penalties. The Tigercats suffered three pass interference penalties on three consecutive plays in the third quarter.

Holdren would lead the scoring frenzy with 5:07 on the clock when he ran in a two-yard run and received a pass from Guske for the extra two points. ACH would respond on a 26-yard pass but Harder blocked the pass to the end zone for the extra points.

The final score of the quarter with 1:45 left would come from a 20-yard run by Holdren, but the pass for two points would be incomplete. Holdren’s touchdown brought the third quarter score to 44-28.

Holdren continued to lead the Tigercats in scoring when he ran into the end zone with five minutes remaining in the third on a five-yard run. Hostetler pushed his way through the Warriors defensive line to add two points to the board.

The final score of the game immediately followed the Tigercats touchdown when the Warriors ran 55 yards to add six points to their score. The two-point conversion was good, bringing the final game score to 52-36.

The Tigercats move on to play the undefeated Liberty Christian team at Edgar Brown Stadium. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 16.

The Tigercats faced the Southeast 1B league champions in a regular season match up on Oct. 26, losing to Liberty Christian, 0-78. Liberty Christian faced Odessa-Harrington in the first state game, winning with a score of 90-26.