Monona Groves Comes Back To Win Div. 3 Title
Friday, November 22nd, 2013 -- 3:06 PM
Monona Grove (14-0) fought back from a 17-0 deficit to claim the Division 3 State championship with a 21-17 win over previously unbeaten Greendale (13-1) Friday.The Silver Eagles were denied points on each of their first three possessions of the game despite advancing the ball into the Panthers? red zone.
Monona Grove?s first drive stalled on downs at the Greendale 14-yard line. The Panthers proceeded to score on their first and only drive of the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead. Josh Ringelberg capped the drive with a 6-yard scoring run. Mitchell Brees caught four passes on the drive for 50 yards.
On Monona Grove?s ensuing possession, they marched to 60 yards on 17 plays but turned the ball over on downs on the Panthers? 3-yard line. Lighting struck immediately after for the Panthers as Ringelberg hit a sprinting Nate Miller on a 97-yard touchdown pass to give the Panthers a 14-0 advantage at 8:08 in the second quarter. The connection was the longest in WIAA State finals history for all divisions.
The Silver Eagles were again denied points on their third straight possession in the red zone, failing to convert a fourth-and-four situation at the Greenfield 14-yard line.
Frankie Rutkowski booted a 31-yard field goal to give Greendale a seemingly comfortable halftime advantage.
Monona Grove found the end zone for the first time on a two-play, 80-yard drive in the third quarter. Tyler Blank connected with Brady Blang on a 37-yard strike followed by a 46-yard scoring toss to Jackson Riley to cut the Silver Eagles? deficit to 17-7. The Silver Eagles pulled to within a field goal with 8:18 to play on a 34-yard scoring pass from Blang to Trey Powers.
The Silver Eagles completed the comeback when Brock Offerdahl found the end zone from a yard out with 53 second remaining in the game.
Tyler Blang and Toren Young led the Monona Grove comeback win. Blang completed 9-of-17 passes for 217 yards and two scores, and he rushed 13 times for 58 yards. Young ran for a game-high 150 yards on 31 carries.
Ricgelberg finished with 270 yards passing for the Panthers, which set a Division 3 State finals record, and a touchdown. Brees also set a single-game Division 3 State record for receptions with nine for 98 yards. Miller added four catches for 120 yards and a touchdown.
Monona Grove wins its third State championship in its fourth State finals appearance, and Greendale finishes runner-up for the second time in its two appearances in the final.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.