When Oxford’s leading rusher went down with a shoulder injury Friday other players knew they needed to pick up the Schlak.
And that’s exactly what they did to lead the Wildcats to a 17-7 victory over Holly and a 3-0 record.
Tailback Sergio Schlak had rushed for 387 yards in Oxford’s first two games, to help the Wildcats go 2-0. Following his injury in the second quarter, Paul Whiteman was asked to fill in at tailback.
Whiteman picked it up quickly, scoring on a 65-yard run with 6:50 left in the second quarter to break a 7-7 tie and provide what proved to be the winning margin for the Wildcats.
Fullback Hugo Gomez also had to step up and carried the ball 27 times in the game for 147 yards. Gomez scored Oxford’s first touchdown of the day from one yard out with 2:39 left in the first quarter.
Gomez’s score was set up on a 48-yard pass from quarterback Billy Keenist to Chris Harper, who was knocked out of bounds on the one-yard line.
Mike Jones kicked both conversions for Oxford and also added a 27-yard field goal in the third quarter, which were the only points in the second half for either team.
The Bronchos? only score came on a 71-yard run by Sam Shimmel. Brian Cornwell kicked the conversion with 1:41 left before halftime for a 7-7 deadlock at intermission.
Both teams had opportunities for touchdowns in the second half but couldn’t quite get there. Holly’s defense stopped Oxford twice inside the three yard line on fourth down plays.
Jeremy Bukoski recovered a Broncho fumble in the end-zone to halt a potential touchdown drive for Holly.
Prior to the first goal line stand by Holly, Keenist hit tight end Pat Streit on what appeared to be a 27-yard touchdown pass that was called back on a holding penalty at the two-yard line. The Cats moved the ball to the three but Holly’s defense stopped Gomez on a fourth-down carry.
On the second goal line stand, the Wildcats had a solid drive going with Gomez collecting 36 yards on one run, his longest of the game. Keenist hit Vinnie Ives on a nifty pass that brought the Wildcats down to the nine yard line.
Holly’s defense stopped Gomez inside the one and the Bronchos took over.
The ensuing drive was the longest for either team, with Holly using its three-man backfield that features options, fake hand-offs and misdirection to keep defenses guessing.
The Bronchos drove 96 yards down to Oxford’s three yard line and fumbled into the endzone where Bukoski recovered.
Gomez then picked up three first downs on the ensuing possession to run out the clock.
Keenist was five-for-seven yards passing for 85 yards to lead the Wildcat offense to 386 total yards. Whiteman finished with 116 yards rushing.
Holly had 250 yards in offense.
Coach Bud Rowley said the team picked up one another, even though the game, at times, was sloppy.
‘Everybody stepped up. Gomez stepped up and carried nearly 30 times. Whiteman did a nice job,? Rowley said. ‘Our defense stepped up and caused a fumble late. We’ve preached that all year.?
This Friday the Wildcats will host Carman-Ainsworth at 7:30 p.m. The Cavaliers are 3-0 and ranked third in the state in Division I