A steady rain fell throughout the WIAA Division 3 Level 1 playoff football game at Carroll University's Schneider Stadium on Friday, Oct. 23. However, the real force of nature was a Catholic Memorial squad that has high aspirations for its playoff run.
The No. 2-seeded Crusaders (8-2) showed visiting Cudahy (4-6) the variety of ways they can win games: mainly a suffocating defense and an offense that can be explosive, efficient or a variety of both.
With the 44-0 victory, Catholic Memorial will host No. 3-seed Evansville/Albany (14-0 winner over Pewaukee) at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, in a Level 2 contest.
For Cudahy, the defeat was the end of the Packers' first playoff trip since 2011 and second since 2007. For coach Max Wasikowski, the challenge now becomes building off this playoff trip and making playoff appearances a regular occurrence for the program.
"We built (this playoff team) on our seniors," Wasikowski said. "We have a lot of seniors who have been playing since they were freshmen, and they worked hard their whole career and set the tone for the kids behind them. Hopefully, the kids, especially the sophomores and juniors who got some playing time, stay hungry over the offseason and know what this feeling is like."
For a Memorial team that had four shutouts in the regular season and allowed just 9.67 points per game, the defense set up the offense. The Crusaders held the Packers to just 30 yards of total offense and three first downs on 26 first-half snaps, taking 30-0 lead into the break.
Cudahy finished with 111 yards of total offense and six first downs.
"I thought our kids flew around and did a nice job," Catholic Memorial coach Bill Young said.
The offense responded by rolling up 477 yards of total offense in game that was shortened by the running clock after Memorial took the opening kickoff of the second half and went 74 yards in nine plays before Matthew Lechner scored from 7 yards out with 8:52 left in the third for a 37-0 lead.
"You've got to," Young said of the seemingly increased sense of urgency right after halftime. "If you want to advance and be good and keep playing, you cannot drop your guard down for a second. You've got to go out there and be a hammer, and physically dominate."
Catholic Memorial got 324 yards on the ground on 44 attempts (7.36 yards per carry), led by junior Jaylen Campbell, who had 144 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries, and junior Josh Karfonta, who added 91 yards on 11 carries.
Campbell, who battled an ankle injury and a calf strain earlier in the season, appears to be coming into his own and provided a nice speed-size combination that counterbalances Karfonta's shiftier style. Campbell scored on runs of 2 and 10 yards in the second quarter, pushing the lead to 27-0.
"We have so many weapons on offense, it's unbelievable," said Campbell, who was able to find plenty of room running behind a front five that averages 265 pounds per man. "Every time (the offensive linemen) come back in the huddle, I just tell, 'Good job.' I love those guys up front opening holes for me."
That offensive line includes from left to right senior Gabe Bautz (302 pounds), junior Bruce Mesa (271), senior Dan Harford (240), junior Chan Bargielski (268) and senior Pete Koczinski (248).
"Our offensive line did a great job for both Jaylen and Karfonta," Young said.
The Crusaders would get their halftime edge when Eric Fridl kicked a 21-yard field goal on the last play of the first half.
Senior quarterback Alex Bray was 7-of-14 passing for 144 yards and two touchdowns, both to Max Cooper, who scored on a 65-yard strike in the first quarter and a 20-yard pass in that provided the final margin with 3:29 left in the third quarter. Bray also had 48 yards rushing on seven carries and opened the scoring with a 1-yard option keeper with 7:19 left in the opening quarter.
Sam Sagan led Cudahy with 52 yards rushing on eight carries, including a 41-yard gallop on the Packers' final possession of the game. That play accounted for 59 percent of the Packers rushing offense on the night.
"We were excited for the opportunity to be in the playoffs," Wasikowski said. "We hadn't been here in a while. Our boys were hungry, and they knew it was going to be a tough game."