Watertown football opens season with dominant home win

WATERTOWN — A great start to Watertown High School's football season began on the first play.

Senior Juven Hudson took the opening kickoff, broke through a couple of Brookings defenders and dashed 77 yards for a touchdown.

The play sparked an impressive first half that carried the Arrows past the fourth-rated Class 11AAA Bobcats 33-0.

"That was huge," said Watertown's Nathan Briggs. "We just expect it from Juven, he's insane."

The Arrows didn't stop there. On the following possession by Brookings, the Arrows forced a punt and Caden Beauchamp blocked it. Blake Wientjes recovered it at the Bobcats' 1-yard line. Two plays later, Simon Hendricks plowed into the end zone.

Hudson, a returning Class AA All-State running back, added a 33-yard touchdown jaunt with 1:17 left in the first quarter.

Watertown kept going. An interception by Peyton Buisker late in the first quarter led to Treyton Himmerich's 18-yard touchdown pass to Briggs 10 seconds into the second period. Owen Spartz's 1-yard TD plunge in the final minute gave the Arrows a 33-0 halftime lead.

"That's a great way to start," said Watertown head coach John Hodorff. "We played a really good first half and did a really nice job in every phase of the game."

Watertown outgained Brookings 243-93, getting 98 of those yards on the ground from Hudson.

Briggs, a junior, was part of a number Arrows being asked to play bigger roles this fall. Briggs made his mark as a wide receiver, defensive back and punter.

"A lot of people stepped up tonight," said Briggs.

Most of Watertown's offense came in the first half. Himmerich completed nine of 11 passes. Briggs caught four passes for 60 yards and Kohen Kranz two for 17.

Caden Beauchamp recorded seven tackles including a quarterback sack, Buisker three solos and four assists and Kaden Decker one and six for the Arrow defense. Spartz added five assists, Briggs three solos and two assists and Hendricks two and two. Cooper Kettwig also intercepted a pass.

Jones Huntimer went 6-for-15 passing for 48 yards for the Bobcats, who were led in rushing by Will Conrad. Gabriel Stern had four tackles and Gavin Hammrich and Austin Anderson each recorded quarterback sacks. Jay Harris added an interception.

Watertown, after a pair of 3-7 seasons, did receive votes in the state's Class 11AAA poll but few could have expected this. It was the Arrows' first win over Brookings since 2017.

Briggs said the Arrows do have some big expectations.

"We expect to go to the (Dakota)Dome," said Briggs about the site of the state high school football championships come November.

That's a ways away and a lot can happen, but it won't be a pipe dream if the Arrows play the same way they did on Friday.

Watertown visits Huron on Friday at 7 p.m. The Tigers gave No. 2 Tea Area all it wanted on Friday before falling 28-26.

Here's highlights from other area games on Friday:

Pierre 32, Aberdeen Central 0

ABERDEEN — Six-time defending state Class 11AA champion and top-ranked Pierre rolled to the season-opening Eastern South Dakota Conference win over fifth-rated Aberdeen Central.

Cade Kaiser rushed for 191 yards and two touchdowns (5, 49 yards) and completed 15 of 22 passes for 190 yards and three TDs for the Governors. Jett Zabel (34 and 14 yards) and Cooper Terwilliger (7 yards) each hauled in TD scores.

The Golden Eagles got 28 yards rushing from Avery Ligon and 24 from Parker Lemer.

Lucas Chamberlain made seven tackles and Carson Stoeser intercepted a pass for Pierre. Jett Carlson recorded 11 tackles, Mason Schrempp eight and Cordel Rychlik six for Aberdeen Central, which also got a fumble recovery from Jayden Biegler.

Milbank 9, Beresford 0

MILBANK — Milbank won its season opener with a strong defensive effort, a 22-yard field goal by Moises Luna in the second quarter and a 6-yard touchdown run by Owen Tesch in the fourth quarter.

Garrett Mertens rushed for 61 yards and passed for 34 for Milbank. Tate Schlueter caught three passes for 18 yards.

Jayden Johnson made six tackles, Joe French five, Schlueter four and Emmett Hanson four with an assist, one quarterback sack and two tackles for a loss to lead the Bulldogs' defense.

Jack Stenen rushed for 76 yards for the Watchdogs, who outgained Milbank 142-136. Robert Watkins made 10 tackles and Cooper Nelson seven with an assist.

More: Week 1 high school football roundup: Britton-Hecla hangs on vs. Great Plains Lutheran

Hamlin 42, Dell Rapids St. Mary 6

DELL RAPIDS — Tyson Stevenson ran for three touchdowns and passed for another to guide fourth-rated Class 9AA Hamlin (2-0) past third-rated Class 9B Dell Rapids St. Mary (1-1).

Stevenson rushed for 50 yards and scored on runs of 1, 3 and 12 yards. He also completed 12 of 21 passes for 113 yards, including a 55-yard TD pass to his brother Turner. Jackson Wadsworth (11 yards) and Evan Stormo (5 yards) added TD runs.

Stormo rushed for 54 yards and Wadsworth 48. Stormo also caught 10 passes for 92 yards.

Thomas LaVoy scored on a 60-yard run in the fourth quarter for the Cardinals. Trimmier Hanson rushed for 40 yards and passed for 80. Nic Gaspar caught two passes for 48 yards.

Wadsworth made six tackles and Stormo five for Hamlin's defense. Both Stevensons had interceptions and Jameson Nebel added a quarterback sack. Lucas Flemmer and Keaton Hansen had eight tackles each for DRSM.

Faulkton Area 40, Hitchcock-Tulare 0

TULARE — Garrett Cramer scored three touchdowns and Layne Cotton and Spencer Melius each had a hand in two to power fourth-rated Faulkton Area past defending state champion and top-rated Hitchcock-Tulare in a battle of Class 9B teams.

Cramer found the end zone of runs of 2, 52 and 10 yards. Cotton added a 47-yard scoring dash and tossed a 26-yard TD pass to Melius, who also scored on 29-yard run. The Trojans (2-0) finished with 351 yards rushing and 76 passing.

Erik Salmen rushed for 122 yards on 22 carries and also caught three passes for 85 yards for the Patriots (1-1). Brendan Nowell rushed for 42 yards and completed 10 of 20 passes for 148 yards. Payton Chasing Hawk had two receptions for 56 yards.

Nowell had three solo tackles and two assists and Mikael Nelson three and one for Hitchcock-Tulare's defense.

Deuel 26, Aberdeen Roncalli 0

ABERDEEN — Trey Maaland accounted for 251 yards of offense and four touchdowns to lead Deuel (2-0) to the Northeast Conference win.

Maaland ran 20 times for 93 yards, finding the end zone of runs of 2, 1 and 2 yards. He also completed eight of 113 passes for 154 yards, including a 61-yard strike to Oliver Fieber. Fieber finished with two catches for 92 yards. Owen Haas added 67 yards rushing.

Gavin Kloos and Robert Begalka each recorded five tackles for Deuel's defense, which got two interceptions from Maaland and one each from Gabe Sather and Oliver Fieber.

Zane Backous passed for 31 for Roncalli (1-1). Kaden Larson rushed for 29 yards and Aiden Fisher 25. Noah Kramer caught a pass for 24.

Warner 41, Leola-Frederick Area 0

WARNER — The second-rated Class 9A Monarchs improved to 2-0 with the win. Leola-Frederick Area fell to 1-1.

Hunter Cramer scored on an 8-yard run two TD passes to Devon Fischbach (76, 4 yards) for Warner. Payton Volk added TD runs of 4 and 49 yards and Tanner Wolberg 12.

Cramer rushed for 64 yards and completed eight of nine passes for 161 yards. Volk contributed 60 yards rushing and Fischbach hauled in three passes for 180.

Cramer also made 13 tackles, Brodey Sauerwein eight including three quarterback sacks and Charlie Dulany eight for the Monarchs.

Westyn Thorpe rushed for 40 yards and Brayden Sumption 35 for the Titans (1-1).

Elkton-Lake Benton 49, Estelline-Hendricks 0

ESTELLINE — Colt Beck and Riddick Westley combined for 221 yards rushing and four touchdowns to lead the Elks (2-0) to the win.

Beck had 124 yards rushing on 11 carries and also passed for 42 yards, including a 28-yard score to Tanner Stein. Westley gained 91 yards on eight carries. Blake De Vries added 60 yards rushing and a touchdown and Eliot Erickson 56 and a TD.

Mattix Hausman ran for 17 yards and completed four of 12 passes for 28 yards for the Redhawks (0-2). Caden Ching ran for 20 yards and Wyat James caught two passes for 13 yards.

Great Plains Lutheran 46, Waverly-South Shore 0

WAVERLY — Micah Holien scored three touchdowns and Thomas Erickson two to power the Panthers (1-1) to the Eastern Coteau Conference win.

Holien rushed for 48 yards and scored on runs of 1, 2 and 4 yards. Erickson added 76 yards rushing with a 1-yard TD run and also caught a 16-yard TD pass from Brody Scharlemann. Scharlemann finished with 82 yards rushing and 73 passing, teaming with Austin Rubendall twice for 34 yards.

Ryan Kjenstad added a 4-yard TD run for the Panthers, who outgained the Coyotes (0-2) 340-95. Myles York had nine tackles and Greyson Lein four with three quarterback sacks for GPL. Scharlemann added an intercpetion.

Zach Ries completed nine of 26 passes for 79 yards for Waverly-South Shore.

More: Hamlin, Warner and Sioux Valley appear to be the cream of the crop for area gridiron squads

Sioux Valley 42, Sisseton 7

VOLGA — The third-rated Cossacks racked up 397 yards of offense and rolled to victory in a game where all of the scoring came in the first half.

Donovan Rose rushed for 98 yards and two touchdowns (1 and 67 yards) and Boden Schiller 86 and two TDs (36 and 53) for Sioux Valley. Schiller also tossed a 46-yard TD pass to Maverick Nelson and Broden Teske a 10-yarder to Mitchell Guthmiller.

Wyatt Hardt had five tackles and a fumble recovery for Sioux Valley's defense. Wyatt Nelson also recovered a fumble and Brody Haaland intercepted a pass.

Sisseton (1-1) scored on a 36-yard run by Ethan DeSpiegler. Mason Schultz notched seven tackles and DeSpiegler and Hunter Biel each five.

Groton Area 56, Redfield 6

REDFIELD — Lane Tietz went 7-for-7 passing for 143 yards and four touchdowns to lift the Tigers (1-1) to the Northeast Conference win.

Colby Dunker (48 and 23 yards), Keegen Tracy (30 yards) and Teylor Diegel (17 yards) all hauled in scoring passes from Tietz. Korbin Kucker scored on runs of 5 and 6 yards, Diegel returned an interception 40 yards for another score and Tracy dashes 75 yards to the end zone.

Kucker rushed 15 times for 133 yards and Tracy seven for 118. Dunker made three catches for 87. Christian Ehresmann and Brevin Fliehs had six tackles each and Diegel intercepted two passes.

Redfield (0-2) scored on a 33-yard pass from Chase McGillivary to Justin Ratigan. Ratigan also had eight tackles and Noah Johnson and McGillivary five each.

Deubrook Area 44, Colman-Egan 14

WHITE — Gavin Landmark rushed 12 times for 125 yards and four touchdowns to lead the way for the Dolphins (2-0). He scored on runs of 38, 28, 6 and 32 yards).

Jace Vomacka completed six of eight passes for 157 yards, teaming with Jake Jorenby on TD passes of 90 and 50 yards.

Devon Landmark led the Dolphins' defense with five tackles and a fumble recovery. Jorenby and Gavin Landmark added interceptions and Lincoln Boer and Conner Andrews quarterback sacks. JP Rogness recovered a fumble.

Clark-Willow Lake 6, Webster 0

WEBSTER — Jack Helkenn's 50-yard touchdown run in the first quarter proved to be more than enough for Clark-Willow Lake's defense in the Northeast Conference game.

The Cyclones (1-1) limited Webster Area (1-1) to a minus-6 yards rushing and 88 passing. Clark-Willow Lake gained 137 rushing and 29 passing. Josh Kannegieter's nine solo tackled led CWL's defense, which also got sacks from Josh Kannegieter and Lincoln Reidburn.

Helkenn rushed 15 times for 82 yards and Ernesto Garcia 11 times for 23 and Josh Kannegieter caught two passes for 15 yards.

Ian Lesnar passed for 88 yards for Webster Area, teaming with Brent Bearman three times for 36 and Jacob Keller twice for 43. Carson Mount rushed for 24 yards and Martin Dorsett led the Bearcat defense.

Stanley County 38, De Smet 30

FORT PIERRE — Class 9AA Stanley County (2-0) outlasted second-rated Class 9B De Smet (1-1) in the shootout.

Brock Zeeb threw for 101 yards to Brendon Bothwell and Barrett Schweitzer rushed for 190 yards for the Buffaloes. Payton Deal had 11 tackles and also returned an interception for a TD.

Britt Carlson rushed for 69 yards and three TDs for De Smet, which also got a rushing TD from Ganon Henrich. Carlson completed 10 of 21 passes for 171 yards but was intercepted four times. He also had 11 tackles and three quarterback sacks.

Other De Smet leaders were Kadyn Fast (78 yards rushing, 91 return yards and 12 tackles), Tom Aughenbaugh (43 yards receiving), Henrich (40 yards receiving and 33 rushing), Trace VanRegenmorter (61 yards rushing) and Gannon Gilligan (13 tackles).

Britton-Hecla 44, Florence-Henry 16

BRITTON — Big games from Bryce Hawkinson (155 yards rushing and touchdown runs of 62, 3 and 7 yards) and Jaxon Zuehlke (207 yards passing and two TDs passes plus a TD run) led the Braves to their second-straight win to start the season.

Zuehlke connected with Daniel Person four times for 177 yards and two scores (73 and 58 yards) and also found the end zone on 2 -yard plunge. Jace Rein contributed 125 yards rushing, including an 82-yard TD jaunt. The Braves finished with 593 yards of total offense.

Karter Kohlenberg paced the Falcons (0-2 and 0-2) by running 21 times for 151 yards and two TDs (10 and 44 yards). Dawson Lantgen completed six of 13 passes for 48 yards, teaming with Kohlenberg twice for 31.

James Kahnke made 11 tackles, Kohlenberg 10 and Tristan Sumner eight for the Falcons. The Braves were cited for a team effort.

Ipswich 48, Northwestern 10

IPSWICH — Max Kulesa completed 10 of 14 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns for the Tigers (1-1).

Kulesa scored on a 10-yard run and tossed scoring passes of 18 and 23 yards to Trevor Heinz and 45 yards to Kyle Hettich. Heinz (3 yards) and Casey Geditz (75 yards) added scoring runs.

Northwestern (0-2) scored on a TD run by Dustin Dirksen and a safety.

Mobridge-Pollock 42, Dakota Hills 8

MOBRIDGE — The Tigers evened their record at 1-1 with big games from Simon Fried, Max Saxon and Taylin Carmody.

Fried ran for 116 yards and added 88 yards receiving and a touchdown, Saxon rushed for 103 yards and two TDs and Carmody threw for 240 yards and two scores. Jackson Eisemann finished with 90 yards receiving and a TD.

Carter Hinsz (10.5 tackles plus a fumble recovery) and Bryden Wientjes (six tackles) led the Tiger defense.

Tigh Gaikowski caught three passes for 38 yards and scored a touchdown for the Grizzlies (0-2). Dylan Rumpza rushed 21 times for 68 yards and added a conversion. Evan Aker passed for 42 yards.

Defensive leaders for Waubay-Summit included Rumpza, seven tackles and an interception; Brooks Dolen and Caleb Miller, seven tackles; Logen Niles, six tackles; and Jaxen Dockter five tackles.

Freeman-Marion/Freeman Academy 50, Iroquois-Lake Preston 0

LAKE PRESTON — The Phoenix improved to 2-0 with the victory. Riley Gail led the way with 84 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

Riley Tschetter paced for two touchdowns and ran for another for FMFA, which also got a rushing TD from Jackson Donlan. Dominic Sperling ran for 66 yards and Harley Crooks led the defense with five tackles.

Josh McMasters had 23 yards rushing for the Sharks (0-2). Lucas Peskey recorded four tackles.

More: Plenty of talented gridiron standouts to keep an eye on this fall in northeastern South Dakota

Herreid-Selby Area 24, Timber Lake 12

SELBY — Houston Hauge ran the football 38 times for 181 yards and three touchdowns to lift the Wolverines (1-1).

Mason Vetter added 44 rushing yards and a TD for HSA, which got 66 yards passing from Wayne Grage, 32 yards receiving from Trevor Gill and eight tackles from Kaden Sayler.

Gracen Hansen threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Gavin Farlee, who also scored on an 80-yard kickoff return, for Timber Lake (1-1).

Jones County 56, Sunshine Bible Academy 6

MURDO — Kaden Kinsley (140 yards rushing and two scores) and Bryer Kinsley (113 yards rushing and a TD) led the way for Jones County.

Thad Kierl and Cooper Fedderson added TD runs for the Coyotes (1-1).

SBA fell to 0-2.

Potter County 26, Sully Buttes 12

HOVEN — Potter County improved to 2-0 and dropped Sully Buttes to 0-2. No other details were reported.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on Twitter @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Week 2 Northeast South Dakota high school football scores, roundup