Lodi (1-0, 0-0) posted a convincing 34-6 non-conference win over Delavan-Darien/Williams Bay (0-1, 0-0) Aug. 18 at Lodi. The Blue Devils first quarter scoring opportunities were stopped short by turnovers, but the Capitol North team exploded for three second quarter points to take a 21-0 lead into the halftime intermission.

The Lodi defense kept the Comet offense off the field and in check throughout the first two quarters.

Week one is always interesting because you are never quite sure how quickly the players will get things going in the first full competition of the year. We were extremely pleased with the way the offense moved the ball down the field on the opening drive. The effort that was put forth from the very beginning of the game was impressive. The team played well but only showed a small glimpse of what they are capable, said Lodi Head Coach David Puls. The team will have to make many improvements throughout the season if they want to reach their goals. We need to have a good week of practice and correct a lot of blocking in the run game and the execution and decision making in the pass game, on defense we need to work on tackling, coverage, shedding blocks, staying low, and controlling our gaps. We have a great group of seniors and we expect them to keep things going in the right direction.

Lodis first score came early in the second quarter as senior Jacob Heyroth ran the ball in from 3 yards out (Savannah Curtis kick) to give the Blue Devils a 7-0 advantage.

A short time later, Heyroth sprinted 62 yards on a punt return (Curtis kick) to raise the Lodi advantage to 14-0.

Cameron McDonald connected with Kade Crissinger on an eight yard scoring toss (Curtis kick) later in the quarter to give the Blue devils a commanding 21-0 lead entering the third quarter.

McDonald teamed up with Dominic Scola on a 35-yard catch and run (Curtis kick) in the third quarter for a 28-0 Lodi lead.

Ben Rashid scored the Blue Devils final touchdown on a one yard run (Curtis kick unsuccessful) to raise the Lodi advantage to 34-0.

Delavan-Darien/Williams Bay finally lit up their side of the score board with an 18-yard touchdown run by Dakota Williams (Jaime Flores extra point unsuccessful) to close the final score to 34-6.

The Blue Devil offense posted 203 yards rushing and added another 77 yards through the air.

Heyroth gained 124 yards rushing in 22 carries and sophomore Colton Nicolay chipped in 45 yards rushing on 11 carries to pace the Blue Devil rushing game.

Both backs ran hard and made some big plays. Cameron McDonald had a couple of pass miscalculations early on, but then responded admirably with a couple of completions on screen passes and a couple touchdowns, Puls said.

McDonald completed five of seven passes for 77 yards and two touchdown passes. He was picked off twice by the Comet defense. Scola (35 yards), Hyroth (18 yards), Nicolay (12 yards), Crissinger (eight yards) and Rashid (four yards) each caught a pas during the game.

Lodi held the Comets to just 34 yards rushing in 26 carries and 118 yards passing.

Owen Jelinek led the team with five tackles and Max Barreau recorded four tackles (two TFLs, one sack, one forced fumble). Will Richards recorded 2 TFLs with a fumble recovery. Austin Soehle also had a fumble recovery, multiple quarterback pressures, and a pass defended. Twenty different Lodi players recorded at least one tackle in the game.

Overall, it was a great night for Parents Night and any win is a good win, Puls said. We learned a lot about our team Friday and now we need to move forward. We play the at Wisconsin Dells High School [Aug. 24] at 7 p.m. The Dells got a win against Thorp this past Friday and they are a much improved team. They are riding high after their win and will be looking to keep things rolling when they play us on Thursday. We expect our team to be ready and compete at the highest level,

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Blue Devils beat Comets - hngnews.com