Newman Catholic Offense Runs Past Greenwood

In a must-win game going into Saturday, the Newman Catholic Cardinals knew they had to take care of business in their homecoming match-up versus the Greenwood Indians. Newman Catholic, 2-2 entering the game, had a 3-1 Greenwood team coming into Thom Field for a Cloverwood conference battle, and knew that if they wanted to stay in the hunt for their third straight trip to the playoffs they would have to pick up a “W” on Saturday.

After Greenwood started the game off with a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, the Cards didn’t take long to answer.  Senior quarterback Andrew Wilke had a 46-yard touchdown run to tie things up at 7-7 midway through the first quarter as they continued to run all over Greenwood’s defense. In the second quarter, junior tailback Brad Knoblock scored the first of his two touchdowns, followed by a 16-yard touchdown pass from Wilke to Patrick Dreschler. Newman Catholic took a 21-7 lead into the locker room at half time, and continued the offensive clinic they were showcasing, in the second half.

Knoblock’s second touchdown run of the game came in the third quarter, putting Newman up 28-7.  Senior running back Luke Prososki added another touchdown to give the Card’s a 35-7 lead at the end of the third quarter. Newman Catholic then held Greenwood to only one touchdown in the fourth quarter, but the offense was too much for the Indian’s defense to handle in the 35-14 Newman Catholic win. The Cardinals, who are known for their talented running game, tallied up 390 yards rushing, thanks to 186 yards on 13 carries from Wilke, as well as Knoblock and Prososki combining for 145 yards and three touchdowns.

The Newman Catholic victory put the Cardinals at 3-2; they need only two more wins to clinch a playoff berth for the third consecutive year. “We executed the game plan the way we wanted to and that’s a credit to the kids,” said Newman Catholic Head Coach Paul Michlig. “The win takes us one game closer to getting to our goal, which is making the playoffs.” Michlig and his squad next face a very tough Thorp team on the road.

Newman Catholic's offense, who racked up 390 yards on the ground against Greenwood, will hope to keep rolling while they take on a Thorp defense who has only given up 502 yards rushing all season. The match-up between the two teams seems to be developing into a bit of a rivalry, in which Thorp beat Newman Catholic in close games the previous two meetings.  However, this year’s Newman Catholic team is much different from years past. Rather than having only one offensive weapon, this year’s Newman Catholic team is stacked with many playmakers who have contributed to the success, and they plan to keep it going.