Webster Schroeder uses bash and dash to power past Hilton

By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA

The tradition of the hard-nosed, in-your-face football played by the Hilton Cadets goes back a good four decades.

When you play the Cadets, you know it. Toughness is a Hilton hallmark.

Just don’t tell that to the Webster Schroeder Warriors. They’ve grown tired of hearing it. Oh, the Warriors definitely respect the brand of football Hilton plays, they just believe two can tango – and on Friday night they proved it.

With Schroeder’s offensive line serving up pancakes on LeBeau Field, junior quarterback Kalin Watkins and senior running back Liam Torpey ran wild and ran free.

Watkins and Torpey each scored a pair of touchdowns and Watkins also threw a TD pass to senior wideout Anthony Amico as the visiting Warriors rolled past Hilton 34-14.

“The whole offseason, ever since we saw we would be playing them in the first game, we worked so hard because we wanted to prove we’re the much more physical team than those dudes,” senior center Jesse DeBalso said.

They were intent on proving it as soon as they touched the ball, too. After Travis Washington returned the opening kickoff 51 yards, Schroeder needed just seven plays to score. Watkins capped the drive by darting five yards untouched into the end zone.

Hilton junior Tyler Reger retaliated immediately, returning the ensuing kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown and a 7-7 tie.

But the Warriors went right back to work – and right back down the field, this time driving 80 yards for their second touchdown. Watkins again did the honors near the goal line, following punishing blocks by DeBalso and senior guard Kyle Garrie to score from six yards out.

In the first two drives, Watkins rushed six times for 65 yards and completed three of six passes for 49 yards. Little comes easy on the football field, but the Warriors made it look easy.

“I think people think we’re more of a passive team and not a tough team, but we’ve got the best five guys up front and we can play either way,” Watkins said, referring to the offensive line with DeBalso, Garrie, guard Dutch Henneberg and tackles Brysen Terry and Colin Raspudic.

Watkins finished with 95 yards rushing on 11 carries and completed 13 of 20 passes for 174 yards.

“I had all day – all day,” he said.

Of course, it doesn’t hurt to have explosive weapons like Amico and Zach Kaldis on the outside as well as a running back. It’s bit of a pick-your-poison, catch-22 for defenses. Do you take away the deep threats or take away the running game?

“Hilton was really respecting our threats on the perimeter so the inside was open,” Schroeder coach Michael Stumpf said.

Watkins only connected deep once, setting up the game-breaking touchdown just before halftime. On first down from the Hilton 46 and with 30 seconds remaining, Watkins scrambled to buy time, then lofted a pass down the right sideline that Amico skied up to catch at the 2.

On the next play, Watkins lobbed a go-up-and-get-it strike to Amico in the left of the end zone and Michael Belair’s PAT kick stretched the lead to 27-14 with just 16 seconds remaining in the second quarter.

Four first-half possessions, four touchdowns, and never really a hint of being stopped. They faced third down just three times in those four drives.

“Nobody’s surprised by this,” Watkins said.

The Schroeder defense then deflated the Cadets on Hilton’s only drive of the third quarter. The Cadets took the kickoff and put together a 10-minute, 17-play drive en route to a first-and-goal at the 4.

But the threat ended when quarterback Matt Kosiorek’s fourth-down pass into the end zone was intercepted by Nathan Vazquez.

“It was a shootout at first but our defense came together and really came up big,” Watkins said.

Following the interception, Schroeder methodically drove 69 yards in 14 plays to score the clinching TD, with Torpey darting into the end zone from a yard out. That made it five consecutive possessions with touchdowns.

“Hilton has always played good, tough football but our kids are starting to get a little fed up because we’re not soft,” Stumpf said. “They wanted to come here and play well and match the physicalness of Hilton.”

Needless to say, it was mission accomplished.

“We wanted to see what we could do,” DeBalso said, “and I think this sets the tone for the rest of the season.”