Waunakee defeats DeForest in rivalry football game

Waunakee controlled its annual football matchup with DeForest, handing the Norskies a lopsided defeat.

Waunakee, ranked No. 6 in the Bound Wisconsin Division 1 Coaches Poll, shook off a slow start, using a 21-point second quarter to secure a convincing 42-13 victory over DeForest on Friday, Sept. 18 at DMB Community Bank Stadium.

Following the victory, Waunakee extends its win streak against its crosstown foe to seven games — a stretch dating back to 2019.

With an unusual 6 p.m. early kickoff due to impending weather concerns, DeForest struck first.

Senior defensive back Noah Manthe halted the Warriors’ opening drive with an interception. Only a handful of seconds later, senior Norski running back Dalton Lee broke loose on a 66-yard touchdown, igniting the poncho-dressed crowd to give DeForest an early 7-0 advantage with 9:43 left in the first.

Game recap

Senior defensive back Noah Manthe races down the field after recording an interception during the first Waunakee drive on Friday, Sept. 18 at DMB Community Bank Stadium.

On the ensuing drive, Waunakee methodically marched up the field. The Warriors then found themselves comfortably at the Norski goal line, threatening to score.

On fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line, DeForest stuffed the rush, taking over on downs.

But after that specific play, the Warriors took control the rest of the way.

With less than three minutes remaining in the first, Waunakee capitalized on strong field position. Junior running back Zander MacKenzie powered home a 27-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game at seven apiece.

As the first-quarter clock turned from minutes into seconds, senior linebacker Jackson Strobel returned a 16-yard pick-six. His touchdown gave Waunakee a 14-7 advantage going into the second quarter.

Warriors’ coach Chris Graverson was proud of how his team responded after the slow start.

“(DeForest) has some good players over there,” Graverson said. “They’re a good team. They’re gonna get some things figured out.”

“We’re going to get everybody’s best, and we should expect to be in that situation some more, where somebody’s going to come at us,” Graverson continued. “I thought they did a nice job of doing that, and I thought our kids did a nice job of responding.”

As the second quarter unfolded, the Warriors outscored DeForest 21-0 to put the game away.

Waunakee scored its first of three second-quarter touchdowns when senior wide receiver Andrew Mussallem ran 50 yards on a sweep-for-a-score to lead 21-7 with 10:21 remaining.

Less than three minutes later, the Warriors used a 39-yard reception from senior tight end Gavin Selk to get inside DeForest’s 10-yard line.

Senior quarterback Aaron Trudell rolled right, finding senior tight end Jackson Kidd in the end zone for a five-yard score, widening Waunakee’s advantage to 28-7 with 7:58 remaining.

Late in the second quarter, senior wide receiver Will Dama picked up two first downs before Trudell found junior wide receiver Cade Murphy for a seven-yard score with just 26 seconds left on the clock.

Murphy’s score helped Waunakee hold a 35-7 advantage at the break.

In the third quarter, Mussallem caught his second touchdown of the evening, a 19-yard reception, to extend Waunakee’s lead to 42-7 midway through the third.

But DeForest didn’t end the game on a whimper, however.

That’s when senior Sam Weisbrod delivered the biggest rush of the night.

With less than seven minutes left in the fourth quarter, Weisbrod broke free for an 88-yard touchdown. DeForest's extra point was blocked before Waunakee left enemy territory with a 29-point victory.

The Warriors had five different athletes score a touchdown — a number Coach Graverson likes to see, crediting the depth of the entire roster.

“Our offense is working on the ‘take what they give you ‘ mindset, and if they’re going to give you somebody else, you can’t force-feed it to one guy because that guy might not be open next time,” Graverson said.

Weisbrod’s monster rush accounted for 88 of DeForest’s 113 total rushing yards. Dalton Lee chipped in with 64 yards on nine attempts, but Waunakee’s defense forced DeForest’s quarterback to negative 34 yards.

Additional details

Waunakee rushed for 208 yards and passed for 142. Trudell led the Warriors with 74 rushing yards. Senior running back Eli Drangstveit had 62 yards on 17 attempts while MacKenzie had 52 yards on eight attempts.

Trudell finished 11-for-16 on 124 passing yards. DeForest’s quarterback, junior Macrae Midlikowski, passed for 58 yards on nine-for-17 completions. Senior wide receiver Cooper Brown led DeForest in receiving yards with 42, while junior tight end Michael Allen snagged two 15-yard receptions.

Selk led Waunakee in receiving yards with 39, while Dama caught for 31 yards. Mussallem had 22 receiving yards, while Murphy recorded 19. Charlie Elliott, junior defensive lineman, had one sack for Waunakee.

Up next for DeForest, DeForest (1-4) will try to get back on track with a road trip to Milton on Friday, Sept. 25. Waunakee (4-1) will travel to Sun Prairie West for its Week 6 matchup.

206 Badger-Large Conference Football Standings

Note: Results are after Week 5

Monona Grove: 3-0 (5-0)

Waunakee: 3-0 (4-1)

Sun Prairie East: 2-1 (3-2)

Milton: 2-1 (2-3)

DeForest: 1-2 (1-4)

Sun Prairie West: 1-2 (1-4)

Oregon: 0-3 (2-3)

Watertown: 0-3 (1-4)