WIAA football: Prairie du Chien stopped by unbeaten Mayville in Division 5

Prairie du Chien quarterback Maddox Cejka drops back to pass during the second half of the Blackhawks' 26-21 loss to the Cardinals on Friday night at McFarland High School in the WIAA Division 5 state semifinals. Brent Seiler, right, is pictured running a route.

Prairie du Chien quarterback Maddox Cejka passes downfield over Mayville's Sawyer Hardesty (83) during the second half of the Blackhawks' 26-21 loss to the Cardinals on Friday night at McFarland High School in the WIAA Division 5 state semifinals.

McFARLAND, Wis. -- It would have been difficult to script a much better start to Friday night's WIAA Division 5 state semifinal game for the Prairie du Chien High School football team.

And the Blackhawks were in control most of the way after a fumble recovery for a touchdown in the opening minutes, as well.

It just wasn't to be.

Blake Schraufnagel's 30-yard touchdown run up the middle with 4 minutes, 51 seconds remaining gave Mayville its first lead since midway through the second quarter, and the Blackhawks couldn't answer, losing 26-21 to fall short of their first trip to the championship game since 1988.

"They played their hearts out," Blackhawks coach Cory Koenig said. "Unfortunately in a game like that, somebody has to lose. We lost to a great team -- Mayville is well coached and just came out on top a little bit ahead of us.

"We tell them to leave it on the field and that's exactly what they did."

Mavyille (13-0), which shut out its opponents in the second round and in the quarterfinals by a combined score of 70-0 after winning 58-8 in the opening round, advances to the title game for a rematch with Aquinas, which won a thriller at Camp Randall a year ago, 28-26. The Cardinals are seeking their first title since winning it all in Division 4 in 1994.

They certainly had their hands full with Prairie du Chien (10-3) on Friday night, right from the word go.

Blake Thiry sacked Addison Mittelstadt on the third play of the game, forcing a fumble that linebacker Jack MacEachern scooped up and ran in for a 10-yard TD to give the Blackhawks a 7-0 lead with 1:44 gone by.

Then after Mayville 2,000 yard-rusher Blake Schraufnagel took a screen pass 66 yards to the 8-yard-line to set up his 6-yard TD run off the left side two plays later -- it was his 36th TD run of the season and he added three more after that one -- Prairie du Chien answered.

Starting from Mayville's 48-yard-line, a 12-yard catch by Thiry followed by a 21-yard run by Ty Wagner were the key plays on a scoring drive that Wagner capped with a punishing 4-yard TD run to make it 14-7.

Again Mayville punched back, this time going 80 yards in seven plays and scoring on a 23-yard TD run by Schraufnagel with 1:46 to go in the first quarter. The extra point was blocked so the Blackhawks remained in front, 14-13.

The Blackhawks were forced to punt on the ensuing drive and Schraufnagel's 56-yard TD run on a trap play up the middle would give the Cardinals a 20-14 lead.

But fullback Kurt Wall's 1-yard dive up the middle capped a 10-play, 64-yard drive for the Blackhawks that gave them a 21-20 lead with 3:43 left in the half.

That's the way it would remain at halftime.

And after a back-and-forth, offensive-minded first half, the second half was the complete opposite.

"Both teams are coached really, really well and so we buckled down, both of us, on defense and the track meet turned into a defensive battle," Koenig said. "One touchdown was scored in the second half, and that was the difference."

It almost wasn't.

The two sides traded punts to start the second half but then Prairie du Chien went on a time-consuming drive that had the makings of really putting the Cardinals on their heels.

That drive, which started at Prairie du Chien's own 15-yard-line, chewed up almost 7 minutes but it was ultimately fruitless after Cohen Raddemann intercepted a tipped ball on Maddox Cejka's pass to the end zone on second-and-7 from the 24-yard-line.

"(Raddemann) made one heck of a play to come back into that," Koenig said. "We had a receiver split way out there that should have taken him out of the play, but he sniffed it out and made his way back into the middle of the field. So kudos to them."

Mayville couldn't cash in, however, and the Blackhawks got one more chance to create some separation. They didn't, but the 61-yard punt did pin Mayville at its own 5 with 7:17 to go.

The long field prove no obstacle for Schraufnagel, who accounted for all 95 yards on the scoring drive, including a 35-yarder to get the Cardinals out from the shadow of their own end zone and later a 30-yarder to paydirt -- both on trap plays up the middle just like on his two long TD scampers in the first half.

"They've got size on us and they were athletic, and they were just kind of wearing us down with that play a little bit," Koenig said. "We were trying to sub in and keep guys fresh, but they're a good football team."

Prairie du Chien put together a promising drive after Schraufnagel's go-ahead score, but on 3rd-and-11 from Mayville's 20-yard-line Cejka was intercepted by Schraufnagel just in front of the goal line and the Cardinals were able to run out the clock.

The Blackhawks came that close to making it to state -- and after starting out 0-2 with losses to Aquinas and Edgewood back in August, to boot.

"Just a resilient bunch. Resilient. That's how I'll remember them," Koenig said. "To start the season 0-2, I'm sure nobody probably expected us to be fighting for a chance to be in the championship game.

"A great, great group of kids -- great leaders. Nobody ever bickered. I'll remember them as being one of the most resilient groups I ever coached."

And, Koenig knows, they'll remember this season as being about far more than just this one loss with a trip to Camp Randall on the line.

"They'll look back at some point in time and realize how special of a season it was," he said. "That's always the sad thing about high school sports is no matter how far you make it, it comes to a crashing halt. It's tough to prepare for that as a kid.

"They're hurting, but the sun will come up tomorrow and ultimately they'll look back and realize how special of a season it was."

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