Hornets put on ice by Polar Bears

Colby takes first defeat since 2019

The Colby Hornets have marched through the football season virtually unchallenged, but that all changed this past Friday when they took the two hour trip to do battle with the Division 2 Hortonville Polar Bears.

It didn’t take long for the Hornets to realize this was an entirely different brand of football, and with hundreds of Polar Bear faithful packing the stands on Horntonville’s Homecoming game, Colby knew this game was different from all the others they had played.

“It was a beautiful night for football, and the Hortonville stadium was top notch,” Hornets head coach Jim Hagen remarked. “The size of the crowd was truly amazing. It was an absolutely electric atmosphere.”

But Colby has never been afraid of a challenge, and were eager for their biggest test of the season, playing against a school that has 1,000 more students in their high school population. That translated to greater depth for the Polar Bears, and that was critical in keeping Hortonville fresh all night long.

Credit goes out to Colby, they gave as good as they got, out-gaining the Polar Bears 342 to 314, with 308 of those yards coming on the ground. The Hornets were able to bottle up much of the Polar Bears run game, but Hortonville countered with a devastating passing attack.

Even so, the Hornets were in it to the very end, knocking on the door of the endzone late in the fourth quarter, but selfinfl icted wounds was the theme of the Friday night 19-13 road loss.

“We had opportunities in the first and second half to score,” Hagen noted. “We just couldn’t find the endzone. We had too many penalties at crucial times during the game.”

Hortonville took the opening kick-off, and traveled down the length of the field, moving deep into Colby territory before the Hornets defense forced a punt.

Colby’s first offensive series was a complete disaster, with a pair of bad snaps resulting in a safety, giving the Polar Bears a 2-0 lead with 7:05 left in the first.

Hortonville took over once again, converting on fourth down to keep the drive alive. Colby’s Andrew Jeske, Mateo Lopez and Mason Voss made big tackles and the Hornets took over on downs.

With nearly a full quarter gone by, the Hornets finally settled their nerves and began to move the ball, battering their way past the Polar Bears’ defense.

Mateo Lopez had a 14-yard scamper, followed by a huge 35-yard carry from Caden Healy, who slipped past several defenders before finally being brought down at the Polar Bear 25-yard line. Colby was in prime position to score, but a fumble by the Hornets was recovered by Hortonville, ending a promising drive.

Hortonville moved the ball with a combination of runs and passes, but could not find pay-dirt, and it remained a 2-0 game heading into the second quarter.

Colby caught a lucky break when Hortonville QB Sam Dodd overthrew his receiver for what would have been a touchdown, and Colby got the ball back on the Polar Bear 45-yard line.

Voss softened up the defense with a five yard pick-up, followed by a Brent Jeske QB keeper. Colby then went to their best play, a misdirection run from Healy, who hit the hole at a full sprint. Healy got into open space, leaving Polar Bears in his wake, as Colby was finally on board thanks the speedy junior’s 35-yard scoring scamper.

The PAT was blocked, but Colby took a 6-2 lead with 10:05 remaining in the half. Colby’s defense forced another stop, keyed by an Andrew Jeske sack, who brings his state leading total to 12.

The Polar Bears returned the favor, getting back to back TFLs, and forced a 44-yard Tristan Stange punt. Colby very nearly got the ball back, forcing a third and long situation, but Dodd was able to scramble and buy time before finding a receiver deep in Colby territory for a 35yard completion.

“Defensively, we played well most of the night, but we had too many breakdowns in coverage giving them big plays on third and fourth down,” Hagen said.

A few plays later, and Dodd connected with Winston Peters for a perfectly placed 20-yard reception that went over two Colby safeties to give Hortonville a 9-6 advantage heading into the break.

Colby put the mental miscues behind them in the second half, and began to run the ball with authority in the third quarter. Brent Jeske and Mason Voss began to bust off chunk play after chunk play.

Jeske had two big runs in the second half, one for 42-yards and another that went for 30-yards, to lead all players with 148 rushing yards on 23 carries. Colby cut through the Polar Bear line, and regained the lead off a five yard carry from Healy with 6:50 left in the third quarter Tucker Brost kicked a succcessful PAT to give Colby a 13-9 advantage, but Hortonville’s passing game, along with runs from Hunter Strange, got the Polar Bears back into scoring position. With just under three minutes to go in the third, Hortonville took the lead for good off a two-yard run from Dodd. The PAT gave Hortonville a 16-9 lead.

Hortonville added to that lead early in the fourth quarter. The Polar Bears took the ball into the Red Zone, but Colby’s defense held them to a 24-yard field goal that kept it a one score game at 19-13 with 8:27 to play.

“I was so proud of how we played against a big school and in a big time environment,” Hagen remarked. “We fought hard all night long, and we had a chance to tie and win the game in the closing minutes of the game.”

Colby methodically marched down the field on a drive that was kept alive by Brent Jeske’s arms and legs, and Healy’s hands. Healy hauled in a huge reception, part of a night where the athletic junior rushed for 104 yards off just ten carries and had three receptions for 34-yards.

The Hornets went deep into Hortonville territory, but the fatigue and wear and tear of playing both sides of the ball allowed the Polar Bears to overpower Colby’s line, and forced a turnover on downs on the Hortonville 17-yard line.

Colby’s defense forced one more stop, but with just over a minute left, could not connect through the air, turning the ball over on downs. That resulted in the Hornets’ first loss of 2021, and their first loss since the 2019 postseason.

Mason Voss added another 42-yards on the ground. Tristan Stange had a huge night on defense, recording a team high nine tackles. Voss and Andrew Jeske each had one sack.

“Even in a loss, I feel like we became a better team,” Hagen stated. “That’s one of the reasons we scheduled this game, to play against really good competition.”

Colby returns home this Friday, and will host Ladysmith at 7 p.m.