ABBOTSFORD FOOTBALL RUNS PAST LOYAL
By Paul Lecker
Zaleski Sports
ABBOTSFORD – Abbotsford used its big offensive line and quick backs to set the tone early with three first-quarter touchdowns, and never let up, as it cruised to a 47-12 win over Loyal in a nonconference football game to open the 2021 season for both teams on Friday night at Abbotsford High School.
Halfback Ty Falteisek ran for 243 yards and three long touchdowns, and quarterback JV Castillo added 137 yards rushing and two scores as the Falcons racked up 586 rushing yards on 55 carries.
“I think our big guys got tired at times and that is where maybe our offense wasn’t getting chunks and we had to work for it,” Abbotsford coach Jake Knapmiller said. “We had a few mistakes, penalties and put the ball on the ground, but when you’re running 10 to 15 plays as opposed to five in scoring in high school football, you’re going to make a mistake. We’re preaching to have that big-play mentality so we don’t make those mistakes.”
Falteisek ran in from 49 yards out on Abbotsford’s fourth offensive play, Evan Reis added a 64-yard touchdown run and Castillo took it 65 yards for a score to give the Falcons a 20-0 lead after their first three possessions.
Loyal put up a fight in the second quarter. After three three-and-outs in the first quarter, the Greyhounds snagged good field position when Abbotsford fumbled a snap on the first play of the second quarter and Peyton Farmer recovered at the Falcons’ 22. Four plays later quarterback Kaiden Hagen hit Drew Stieglitz for a 12-yard touchdown to get Loyal on the scoreboard.
Abbotsford responded with a 63-yard nine-play drive with Falteisek capping it off with a 22-yard touchdown run.
Loyal came back again going 60 yards in eight plays and Louie Nikolai had an 18-yard touchdown run to cut Abbotsford’s lead to 27-12 with 58 seconds to go before halftime.
Abbotsford wasn’t content to run out the clock and went hurry-up after a 22-yard kick return by Castillo. On a second-down play with just 1 second left in the half, Castillo ran in from 3 yards out as time expired and Abby led 33-12 at the break.
Neither team scored in the third quarter before Abby scored two quick touchdowns in the fourth – a 47-yard run by Falteisek and a 11-yard run by Evan Schunk – to give the Falcons a 35-point lead and a running clock for the final 9 minutes.
“We played a lot of young guys and the big thing is, how are the sophomores going to step up to varsity action,” Knapmiller said. “With a short year last year, the guys didn’t play any varsity as freshmen, it was seeing how they jumped into a varsity season and reacted to it. For the most part, we were pleased.
“Evan Reis at wing(back) is new, switching over from tight end just last week because of lack of depth and he had a big run. He’s learning how to hit the jets – he’s a fast kid, just not confident yet. We have some examples like that where we just have to get them to go. Our seniors were our rocks.”
Both teams return to action next Friday, Aug. 27, with nonconference games. Loyal will host Neillsville and Abbotsford will travel to Melrose-Mindoro.
Falcons 47, Greyhounds 12
Loyal 0 12 0 0 - 12
Abbotsford 20 13 0 14 - 47
First Quarter
A – Ty Falteisek 49 run (PAT failed), 10:18.
A – Evan Reis 64 run (Fernando Perez kick), 5:55.
A – JV Castillo 65 run (Perez kick), 1:40.
Second Quarter
L – Drew Stieglitz 12 pass from Kaiden Hagen (pass failed), 9:27.
A – Falteisek 22 run (Perez kick), 5:01.
L – Louie Nikolai 18 run (pass failed), 0:58.
A – Castillo 3 run (kick missed), 0:00.
Fourth Quarter
A – Falteisek 47 run (Perez kick), 10:50.
A – Evan Schunk 11 run (Perez kick), 9:23.
Team Statistics
First downs: Loyal 5; Abbotsford 16.
Rushing (att-yards): L 30-103; A 55-586.
Passing (comp-att-yards-int): L 5-10-46-1; A 0-0-0-0.
Total yards: L 149; A 586.
Penalties (no.-yards): L 2-10; A 3-15.
Fumbles (total-lost): L 0-0; A 3-2.
Punting (no.-avg.): L 4-45.3; A none.
Individual Statistics
Rushing: L, Louie Nikolai 9-61, Sullivan Hanson 14-42, Jace Prior 1-15, No. 7 (no name provided) 2-2, Tryn Scheel 1-minus 3, Kaiden Hagen 3-minus 14. A, Ty Falteisek 18-243, JV Castillo 17-137, Evan Reis 4-95, Andres Hirsch 5-28, Fernando Perez 3-27, Evan Schunk 5-26, Emelio Escalera 2-25, Grayton Totzke 1-5.
Passing: L, Hagen 5-10-46-1. A, none.
Receiving: L, Drew Stieglitz 3-32, Sullivan Hanson 2-14. A, none.
Fumble recoveries (defense): L, Peyton Farmer, Hanson.
Interceptions (defense): A, Falteisek.
Punting: L, Hanson 4-45.3. A, none.
Records: Loyal 0-1; Abbotsford 1-0.