Kimberly Papermakers outlast Neenah in high school football playoff victory; Kaukauna, Wrightstown also big winners

KIMBERLY − Kimberly football coach Chad Michalkiewicz had been waiting for the right moment to unleash a secret weapon on offense: the right arm of junior linebacker Braedon Ellefson.

Ellefson had a 29-yard touchdown pass and also scored on a 2-yard run to lift the Papermakers past Neenah, 14-7, in a WIAA Division 1 state quarterfinal game Friday at Papermaker Stadium.

Kimberly (10-1) advances to play Milwaukee Marquette (10-2) in a state semifinal Friday at Sun Prairie West.

The 6-foot-3, 195-pound Ellefson entered the game leading the team in tackles but had also dabbled as quarterback on the starting offense the past month or so, mostly in a physical running capacity in relief of starting quarterback Carson Pendleton.

On Friday, Ellefson's play-action pass on second-and-9 in the second quarter pulled the Neenah defense inside the box and allowed plenty of space for Bryson Vieth to go one-on-one with his defender on a post pattern. Ellefson lofted a perfect lob to Vieth for the game's first score.

"I was confident," Ellefson said. "It's something I was ready for the whole season to go in. I'm glad I had great protection on that throw."

Michalkiewicz said the decision to use Ellefson sporadically on offense was a "group" effort by the coaches.

"He was our JV quarterback last year and there’s a good chance he’s going to be our starting quarterback next year. So it’s in his wheelhouse," Michalkiewicz said. "We practice it all the time and he gets quarterback reps at least twice a week and I was waiting for the right time to uncork that. Everyone in the stadium thought he was going to keep it or hand it off. Still got to make the throw and he threw a beauty deep and it was a huge play for us."

Vieth, who finished with five catches for 79 yards, said the team had been practicing with Ellefson throwing the ball this past week.

"We knew teams would be thinking that he's just going to run the ball," Vieth said. "Now, here it comes and he's confident and the coaches are trusting him and I trust him and our offense. And he threw a great ball."

Said Ellefson: "I think I hung it up a little bit in the air but Vieth made a great catch like he's done all season and I just had confidence that he was going to go up and make a play."

Ellefson would follow with the touchdown run in the fourth quarter that gave the Papermakers the eventual game-deciding score. From there, it was up to the defense.

Neenah (9-3) had scored on an 8-yard pass from Ashton Van Beek to Grant Dean in the second quarter. The Rockets had a chance to tie the game or take the lead late in the fourth quarter and drove deep into Kimberly territory.

On a fourth-and-4, Van Beek's pass to Dean would have given the Rockets a possible first down but fell incomplete.

"We kind of have a bend don’t break at times, but also our coaches tell them that they’re not entitled to score when they get in the red zone," Michalkiewicz said. "And I think that’s kind of been emblematic of how we play. Whether it’s the first quarter or the end of the game, doesn’t matter when the ball is snapped, they’re laced up and ready to go and you're going to have to earn it. And they do an outstanding job."

Kaukauna cruises past Cedarburg in Division 2

Kaukauna came up with big play after big play as the top-seeded Ghosts rolled to a 42-13 win over Cedarburg in a Division 2 quarterfinal in Kaukauna.

The Ghosts advance to face Waunakee, a 49-13 winner over New Richmond, next Friday in a state semifinal matchup in Ripon.

Though Kaukauna may not have dominated the statistics, the Ghosts returned two interceptions for touchdowns as well as the second-half kickoff to rout the Bulldogs.

“We were doing some bending, that’s for sure,” Kaukauna coach Matt Binsfeld said. “But they (defense) are always looking to make a big play and they’re not afraid of the moment. Certainly in practice we have a great quarterback who tests them all the time and I think that showed up when they had a sophomore kid trying to throw on us. When we knew he was going to throw, it was a bad situation for them. Our kids are hungry to make plays like that.”

The Ghosts took the lead on a 12-yard run by senior running back Connor Kincheloe with 6:51 left in the first quarter. After Cedarburg answered to tie it at 7-7, Kaukauna was off and running as senior quarterback Finnley Doriot found senior wide receiver Nolan Hall, who outraced the secondary for a 67-yard score and a 14-7 edge.

Cedarburg again began to drive down the field, but John Neumann intercepted the ball off a deflection and sped 65 yards the other way to give Kaukauna a commanding 21-7 lead heading into halftime.

“It was a big momentum shift,” Binsfeld said. “We knew when we played a team like this that likes to hold the ball, run the clock, that if they get a lead they are really dangerous. So that was really big for us to get up a couple of scores early and then to put the pressure on them to have to throw with a sophomore quarterback.”

Danny Poor II opened the second half with a 94-yard kickoff return as the Bulldogs found themselves in an even bigger hole.

“It’s about as good as it can go,” Binsfeld said. “It was fantastic. Danny gave us the spark to get it going. Just the energy on the sideline was fantastic. Every one of our kids was looking to make a play.”

The play fired up the whole team.

“That was awesome. I’m super happy for Danny,” Doriot said. “That is just great to see.”

Poor said he was just as surprised as everyone else at how the second half unfolded.

“It was big,” Poor said. “At halftime, we said we needed one more touchdown to put them away. Surprisingly, we got that right on the kickoff. We never had that this year, so this was a pretty great experience.”

Less than a minute later, Lucas Tetzlaff picked off another pass and raced 60 yards for the score and a 35-7 lead.

“They’ve been great all year, especially down the stretch,” Doriot said of the defense. “They’ve been getting a lot of turnovers, getting us the ball and even scoring tonight. It’s great to see. I trust our defense. They are doing really, really well right now.”

When Doriot found Hall for a 17-yard score with six minutes left in the third quarter, it was time for running clock.

“I’m pumped,” Doriot said. “It’s a great team win. We executed really well. So excited to be back there. We have stuff to prove.”

Bluejays fall late to Grafton in Division 3

Menasha had a pair of turnovers late in the fourth quarter in a 17-13 loss to Grafton in a Division 3 quarterfinal in Grafton.

Grafton scored late in the fourth to take the 17-13 lead after a bad snap on a Menasha punt attempt allowed the Black Hawks to recover at the Menasha 10, with Carson Hildebrand hauling in an 8-yard touchdown pass from Brady Hilgart with 55.3 seconds left.

Menasha had a potential long touchdown bomb come up just short on the ensuing possession and a turnover later in the drive allowed the Black Hawks to escape with the win.

Logan Liegl had a 17-yard touchdown run and also a 3-yard scoring run in the third quarter to lead the Bluejays (9-3). He finished with 102 yards rushing and 92 passing yards.

Bluejays coach Jeramie Korth said his team was in position to pull off a third straight upset in the postseason.

"Our kids deserve to be playing in the state semifinals, but sometimes life happens," Korth said. "This was a great season. We love everything about our players and the heart they showed until the final seconds."

Lodi holds off Xavier in Division 4

Xavier had a 7-7 tie with the Blue Devils on a 1-yard touchdown run from Reid Hietpas, but three second-half touchdowns allowed Lodi to take control and win 28-13 home.

Gavin Sargeant had a 5-yard scoring run and Mason Lane had a 55-yard touchdown run to put Lodi ahead 21-7.

A 30-yard touchdown pass from Reid Hietpas to Cole Hietpas pulled the Hawks (10-2) to within a score, but Kylar Clemens scored on a 29-yard touchdown run to close out the scoring.

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Wrightstown routs Wittenberg-Birnamwood in Division 5

A slow start didn't deter the Tigers in their 41-17 victory over Wittenberg-Birnamwood.

Wrightstown (10-2) fell behind 9-0 to the Chargers on a safety and kickoff return from Owen Dickman.

The Tigers recovered a fumble in the second quarter to set up a Payton Vande Hey 5-yard touchdown run. Vande Hey added a 73-yard touchdown run in the second.

A 1-yard touchdown from Landon Helphrey was followed by a 39-yard rushing score from Trevor Vande Hey. Aiden Humphreys added touchdown runs of 48 and 37 yards in the fourth quarter to ice the win for the Tigers.

State semifinal matchups

All games Friday at 7 p.m.

Division 1

Kimberly vs. Marquette University at Sun Prairie West

Sussex Hamilton vs. Franklin at West Allis Athletic Complex

Division 2

Kaukauna vs. Waunakee at Ripon

Badger vs. Sun Prairie East at Oconomowoc

Division 3

Notre Dame vs. Rice Lake at Marshfield

Grafton vs. Stoughton at Waukesha West

Division 4

Lodi vs. Baldwin-Woodville at Arcadia

Luxemburg-Casco vs. Catholic Memorial at Kewaskum

Division 5

Wrightstown vs. St. Croix Falls at Rhinelander

La Crosse Aquinas vs. Horicon/Hustisford at Wisconsin Dells

Division 6

Stratford vs. Grantsburg at Chippewa Falls

Kewaunee vs. Darlington at DeForest

Division 7

Edgar vs. Bangor at Durand-Arkansaw

Reedsville vs. Black Hawk/Warren at Big Foot

8-Player Championship

Florence vs. Thorp at Wisconsin Rapids, Saturday, 1 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Kimberly, Kaukauna, Wrightstown high school football playoff winners